Raise the Roof for the Millennium

by Jenna Mamorsky

For many people, the sky is the limit when they create the perfect party. In fact, today, it may not be so unusual for some people to plan a party on a jet plane going nowhere or to some extravagant destination! In a recent article in The New York Times, teens had the opportunity to spend the night at FAO Schwarz. Snacking on pizza and gallons of candy, these teens got to play with all of the toys in the store, got caught up in a scavenger hunt looking for the lost Pikachus, and were given $100 cash to pick out their own goodie "bag". This was all to the tune of almost $18,000.

According to two different party planners I spoke with, Harriette Katz and Linda Lese, you can create the "perfect party" even if you don't have that kind of cash. "Many really fun parties have a theme," Mrs. Lese told me. She suggested that if you want to plan a fun party for the millennium, throw a "Kick Off Party" with a bunch of your friends to decide just what kind of theme you want to create. This gets the party started even before the guest list is made! Call an after school pre-party-meeting with some of your friends so you can all decide on ideas together. Party planning gives you something really fun to look forward to while your algebra teacher is giving you your homework assignment.

Mrs. Katz believes that "the right kind of music is the most important ingredient to making a party a success." Mrs. Katz (or Cats, as she owns 10 of them and they are each named after a food!) has been designing parties for over 20 years. "It's important to get to know your clients," she told me. "It's almost like being a psychiatrist, knowing just what will please them." She, too, agreed that theme-parties are good for teens, and recommended some ideas,