Thread: 1st Birthday party gig

I've been asked to dance at a birthday party. The hostess wants me to bring in the cake and dance one song. I sent her the quote over e-mail and she wants to talk to me in person. I'm nervous that she will try to lower the price. I took the average of what people get in this area for that type of job.

The other tricky part is that I work for her in another field so I really don't want things to be awkward but I also don't want to be an undercutter..... I think she might have been expecting a free dance because we are friends. I did mention that I would be sending her a quote but i'm not sure she expected the amount. There really arn't many paying gigs here and i'm trying to build a market for it.

I'm probably over thinking and stressing before I have reason to.

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Michelle Joyce writes about How to Charge for the Gilded Serpent

Michelle Joyce has written an excellent article about this.

She may just want to meet with you to go over details. Don't worry until she gives you reason to. If she tries to lowball you, stand firm. Tell her that you are already offering a discounted rate because she is a friend. I recently did a wedding for a coworker, and I did discount my rate, but my quoted "usual" rate was high so that I could discount but still stay within a reasonable range. She was happy, and I didn't have to undersell myself. Good luck, and let us know how it turns out!

I saw the subject heading and immediately thought "dancing at a baby's first birthday party" My girl turns a year old in 2 weeks, that's my only excuse!


If you need encouragement, there are some great threads on how to present you/your product to support the quote you give. I think SatinWorship had some good points in numerous of her posts.

weigh it out and find your own balance. maybe this would be a great event for you to market yourself and your product. maybe the three new gigs you get from it will qualify this party for a discount.
in the future, especially if there is no market in your area, you can quote a little higher than what you want. people will always try to talk you down and this way, you can get the amount you feel you are worth. this works with friends as well. say, "I usually charge this much for a show but for you i will only charge that much." Most people will appreciate that you are giving them a deal.

altogether, though, it is a tough situation. good luck.

thank you all for the advice...i meet with her this afternoon : )

How'd it go?

(I also thought you were dancing for a baby's 1st birthday when I read the subject line!)

It went well...she had no problem with the money. Only issue is there is no sound and it's a cocktail party so I think bringing a boom box would be tacky... especially the one i have ... she seemed to like the thought of me zilling so i'll just have to make my own music! Thank goodness I love to zill!!!!

my boombox would be tacky...i don't think it's tacky to bring your own stereo...just to be clear.

a word of caution simply because i've been in this situation....
zilling a whole song can get....tiresome, difficult....
makes sure to work out the zilling before the show because five minutes of triplets, no matter how well-played can get boring.
a good tip, try to get the audience to clap to your zilling. it will give you a beat to zill to.

yay for the money factor working out!

Originally Posted by Zobeida

a word of caution simply because i've been in this situation....
zilling a whole song can get....tiresome, difficult....
makes sure to work out the zilling before the show because five minutes of triplets, no matter how well-played can get boring.

Yup. I did this once for a show because the music wouldn't play. I had to do about 10 minutes. It was mentally exhausting. You have to pull out every trick you know for technique (full strike, ringing, clacking loud, clacking soft, tinkling) and patterns that work with the meter you choose (most likely 4/4). Ooooo, you could change up the meter, though! *has brainstorm* Yeah, you could start with 4/4 or 2/4, go into a 6/8 for a slower section (or maybe into a cheftitelli), then finish up with a rousing 9/8 . . . now that's playing your zills!

Also from Zobeida: "a good tip, try to get the audience to clap to your zilling. it will give you a beat to zill to."

Good idea. Just remember, the audience's clapping will slow down even over a very short period of time, so start the clapping yourself, then be prepared to lead them with your zills -- IOW, you have to maintain the tempo because the audience cannot.

Re: the tacky boombox: a boombox isn't tacky in and of itself (well, if you have Hello Kitty stickers all over it, or pirate skulls then, yeah, maybe); rather, it's a necessary piece of equipment for travelling entertainers. You just have to have one that is powerful enough for most situations, and has a good sound; the most important thing is that you can hear your music and the cues it gives you.

Good luck!

Deborah

I also do not feel that a boombox is tacky - you are a dancer, and dancers generally speaking require music to dance to. If the client is unable to provide a stereo or sound system, there's no question in my mind that I'll be bringing my own.

You have to take the audience into consideration too. Some people are easily irritated by the ringing of zills for more than a couple of minutes no matter how good the zill player is. I would definitely take the boombox.

Thanks for all the advice...i zilled a chifti and things went really well... I had soo much fun and heard some positive feedback through the grapevine : )

If someone has a problem with a boombox, bring some type of fabric (or veil)and cover it up. People may still notice it, but it will be tactfully covered and a pretty little background piece.

Originally Posted by harmoney76

If someone has a problem with a boombox, bring some type of fabric (or veil)and cover it up. People may still notice it, but it will be tactfully covered and a pretty little background piece.

Great idea!Thank you:)

Also, since you know her personally you could have her or someone else at the party set up the boombox before you get there, and press play when you want to make your entrance. This way, you didn't bring the boombox, it just happened to be there.
Nikki

I have an amazing boombox (suggested here on Bhuz - posts #9 & 12 here) that has a little remote. It doesn't need "line of sight", so I'm able to start my music myself from another room. Love it!

Originally Posted by micamica

Also, since you know her personally you could have her or someone else at the party set up the boombox before you get there, and press play when you want to make your entrance. This way, you didn't bring the boombox, it just happened to be there.
Nikki

We (my ITS troupe) did a birthday party for a little girl over the summer and we had music issues, too. :) We just brought our huge monstrosity of a machine and covered it up with a veil. It also came with a small remote that can be easily tucked into a tassel belt. I'm glad it went well~