How to organise a formal
Melbourne
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how to organise a formal MELBOURNE 2012
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how to organise a formal MELBOURNE 2012
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contents
2012 how to organise a formal Editorial Your essential formal event checklist Getting your formal organised The first meeting Organising an organising committee! Choosing a date and a venue Budget Themes We must not forget… 1. Permission Forms 2. Security 3. Official guests 4. Photography 5. Student liaison 6. Thank you Have we thought about…? 1. Linen and chair covers 2. Balloons 3. Flowers 4. Menus and place cards 5. Props 6. Lighting 7. Sound 8. Favours Handling the guest list Sponsorship Fundraising Post-formal activities Search for formal suppliers how to organise a formal MELBOURNE 2012
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how to organise a formal MELBOURNE 2012
editorial A night to remember How to organise your formal In America they are called ‘proms’. In the UK, they’re the ‘grad balls’. Here in Australia, the ‘formal’ is a word on the mind of most high school seniors. It’s a lavish celebration of the end of 12 years’ schooling. But magical nights like this – full of great hopes and expectations –don’t just happen. It is an important night and we at HighSchoolFormals.com.au want it to be just right: after all, this is a once-in-a-lifetime night to remember! There’s a lot of organising involved. That’s where this guide comes in. A night to remember – how to organise your formal provides the essential checklist that will ensure you have every aspect covered off and can relax and get on with enjoying your fabulous event. Enjoy! Direct Digital
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Your essential formal event checklist
Getting your formal organised
Organising a formal is not a oneperson job. This is a major event. It requires a dedicated, motivated group of people to pull it off because it’s not just about finding a place, going there and having a good time.
Some schools have a protocol in place regarding who is involved in the organisation. It may be the responsibility of the prefects, or senior leadership team; you may elect a committee; or the school may appoint a committee.
Look at this list of things to Volunteer if you can! Chances organise! are you’ll learn heaps of useful organisational skills, have fun and • Venue make lifelong friends along the way. • Music • Food • Theme • Invitations Melbourne’s Premium • Menu/place cards Formal DJs • Seating plan • Entertainment • Sponsorship • Fundraising With high-fidelity audio systems, laser lighting, • Security dancefloor effects, a massive music library, experience and skills, we’ve made hundreds of high school formals • Permission forms and after-parties unforgettable memories. You can even choose the tracks we mix. • Guest list Your Formal is a rare and exceptional evening. The entertainment you select should be equally exceptional. With quality, style, and the perfect mix, celebrate with • Official guests DJ Masters. Mention this ad to • After party activities receive an exclusive $200 promo discount off our packages. • Thank-you Mobile: 0401 195 858 Free Call: 1800 9966 35 www.djmasters.com.au formals@djmasters.com.au • Student liaison
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The first meeting
Organising an organising committee!
You need to know who’s doing what. Now is the time to appoint A committee usually has a mixture your key committee members and of student and staff representatives. sub-committees. Read on for more Decide straight up who makes what details about these roles. decisions: what the committee can You need a venue and you need decide and what is up to the school. a date. Perhaps that’s already determined. Some schools have Appoint a chairperson, secretary and created a tradition of having their treasurer. You’ll also need a school formal on a particular Friday or representative (a staff member). Saturday of a particular month, • Your chairperson is the chief at the same venue, booked a year coordinator. This person needs (at least) in advance. Your school to be mature and responsible, representative will be able to advise willing to take on a lot of work. you. The chairperson is ultimately responsible for the final decisions You need a budget too. Work out and has to keep everyone on roughly how many people are track. going to attend. How much are you willing to pay for a ticket? Multiply that and you have a rough budget within which to organise the whole event. And remember – that’s not just the venue. That’s food, drinks, entertainment, decorations… Read more about how to set your budget. Draft up a timeline, working backwards from the date of your event, listing everything that needs to be organised, by when. Our checklist will help you.
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Your secretary needs to be extremely organised.The secretary handles all correspondence, takes minutes of meetings, keeps all information filed and in a folder for handover to next year’s committee. Preferably a whiz with Excel.
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how to organise a formal MELBOURNE 2012
Let’s look at what subcommittees need to do.
Job#1 Compile a list of all committee members with: • home phone number • mobile phone number • email address.
Venue sub-committee – locates a number of suitable venues, liaises with the functions managers, and presents a shortlist to the committee. Your committee may want to inspect the short listed venues or you may want your subcommittee to do this as part of their assessment. Music sub-committee – sources a suitable DJ, band or jukebox for the night, and makes a music selection that’s appropriate for the evening.
Distribute this list to all committee Entertainment sub-committee – members. sources entertainment in addition to • Your treasurer must be responsible your music (like a roving entertainers for preparing and overseeing or a fun sideshow). a budget for the event, and recording money received and Food sub-committee – works with spent. It’s best that this role is the chosen venue to select a menu. shared with the school. The school They will need to pay particular will usually handle the money. As a attention to any special dietary protocol – and a security measure needs of guests. – always have two committee Theme sub-committee – chooses members authorise a payment. a theme and then sources the Your school representative will decorations or a professional help you with money matters. theming company to transform the venue. Theming is ultra-popular. • Your school representative is a member of the teaching or admin Read about some of the hottest staff who will ensure the school’s themes around. principles and ethics are complied with.
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Invitations sub-committee – designs Choosing a date and a the invitations, gets printing quotes and chooses a printer. This committee venue The date and venue will run pretty also keeps track of the RSVPs. Menu and place cards sub- much hand-in-hand because you committee – designs and produces can’t have one without the other.
the menu and place cards. This group Review your school calendar for works closely with the Foodies and events. Avoid the beginning of exam the Invitation sub-committees. block! And the night of the footy Seating plan sub-committee – finals!! decides who sits where. It’s not easy Keep your minds open to alternatives. trying to ensure everybody sits with Does it have to be an end-of-year friends or at the table they want! extravaganza? Student liaison committee – informs Date will also be dependent on your Year group about what’s what’s available as a venue. Again, planned (without giving away any keep your minds open. secrets) and whips up enthusiasm so everyone’s really looking forward to Most cities have large hotels and convention centres that handle the event. these events all the time, but you may wish to go for something completely different. Our High School Formals website suggests lots of great places.
Join Us On
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Consider some of these venues: • city hotels • ballrooms • reception centres • convention centres • theme parks • cruise boats • museums • art galleries
• • • • • • • •
warehouses zoo aquarium historic buildings RSL and other clubs marquees restaurants golf clubs
The five-star city hotel may be everybody’s first choice, but you may find the local RSL club can offer the same facilities at a fraction of the cost. And don’t rule out your own school hall! What you save on hiring a city ballroom, you can spend on professional theming. Get your committee members talking: throw around ideas. A marquee might be nice, but do you have a suitable place to erect it? How many people are you likely to be catering for? Would a river cruise be practical?
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it affordable? Everyone – well, most people! – will want to be a part of this night of nights. Don’t choose a place that makes it exclusive to a few, right from the start. The ticket price is not the only cost involved in a formal!
Your venue sub-committee can draw Tip: Make an initial online enquiry, up a short-list of possible venues and requesting information about availability, pricing and menu. then approach them to find out:
THEN actually visit the places on your shortlist. Talk to the functions manager. As a sub-committee, You might be blown away by the narrow your list down to three look of a place but how much will it venues. cost each person? Think about it. Is • available dates • cost
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Remember your school is on show. Your choice of venue will be a reflection of your school. Run your shortlist past your school liaison committee member (the teacher or principal). When you have made the final decision, the venue’s functions manager will be the point of contact for your DJ/band, decorators etc. Add the function manager’s contact details to your master list. If you are lucky enough to find an unusual venue, such as an aquarium or theme park, this can set the theme for your event.
WANTED
CALLING ALL
STUDENT BLOGGERS & BUDDING JOURNOS! We are looking for guest contributors to our site to create short articles that would be of interest to those preparing for and planning school formals. There will be a prize of a $50 iTunes voucher for each article of approx. 200 words that is published. If you are interested and want to find out more, send an email to: editor@highschoolformals.com.au
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Budget Running a large event will encounter a lot more expenses than the cost of the venue hire and food/beverages. These are some of the other items you need to pay for: • band hire • DJ hire • any other entertainment • pre-dinner drinks with parents • room decorations • table centrepieces • linen • chocolates • flowers • special invited guests • gifts • printing Each sub-committee will need to submit an estimate of their costs. These rough estimates totaled together are then divided by the number of anticipated paying attendees. That’s your ticket price. It looks too expensive? Look at ways to offset the costs. Be creative! Can you fundraise? Can you seek sponsorships? This guide explains how. Done well, they’ll dramatically reduce your costs.
Looking for a venue with a difference. Why not ask San Remo Ballroom to transform your school formal to a night to remember with our latest state of the art led theme lighting that can transform the ballroom to any colour of your choice or match your style for the evening. San Remo Ballroom offers a unique blend of old world charm with ornate high ceilings, grand chandelier lighting and arguably the largest dance floor in Melbourne.
Situated just 2km from Melbourne’s CBD, San Remo Ballroom has recently been furbished and restored to its former glory leading the way in world-class events.
San Remo Ballroom is perfectly located for any suburban school formal, valedictory dinner, graduation or debutante ball with secure parking and nearby public transport access to suit students, teachers and parents. Our sophisticated ballroom offers the perfect setting for your event catering from 150 to 550 guests or as many as 1000 guests for stand-up events. Whether you wish to spend your night indulging in mocktails in our lavish ballroom setting or de-stressing from your studies by dancing the night away on our massive dance floor, San Remo Ballroom has everything you require to transform your school formal into an unforgettable occasion. Popular school formal themes at San Remo Ballroom: •
Hollywood
•
Masquerade Ball
• • • •
Winter Wonderland Cinderella
James Bond/Casino Royale Pirates of the Caribbean
Contact us today about our amazing packages with a difference. phone: 9347 4000 | email: functions@sanremoballroom.com.au how to organise a formal MELBOURNE 2012 13
Tip: The school administration usually handles the money. Its business department will have suitable accounting software.
Themes Check out highschoolformals.com.au on
The days of putting a bowl of flowers in the centre of the table are long gone: themed events are increasingly popular. Theming adds excitement and colour to your evening. It can be as conservative or as over-the-top as you wish. A group of students can get together to decorate the venue – or you may choose a professional theming company. They’re experts in setting the scene.
What’s hot now? • • • •
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• • •
Winter Wonderland Casino Hollywood Nights Retro A themed colour – pink, purple, blue, etc. Jungle Boogie Butterflies
Sassy boutique is Australia’s largest online store with over 4000 dresses.
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4. Photography Yes, there’ll be a lot of happy snaps taken but your committee really needs an official photographer to capture this big event. The cost of photos will be an extra; not something that’s included in your ticket price. 5. Student liaison Keep your Year group informed and We must not forget… interested. Make sure there’s an early date claimer. Whip up excitement 1. Permission Forms and support for formal and make Your school will probably seek signed sure those RSVPs roll in on time! parental permission to attend the formal. It provides the school with 6. Thank you some legal protection in case of When the formal is over, your committee needs to write thank-you accidents. letters to all played a part in making 2. Security the event a success. Check that your venue includes security staff. You may need some Have we thought extras.
about…?
Also check on cloakroom facilities. Your guests need someone safe to 1. Linen and chair covers leave handbags, cameras and coats You only have to look at a photograph of a table set without chair covers or during the function. overlays to see the huge difference 3. Official guests this makes to your event. Yes it will Official guests – not paying attendees add to your ticket price but there are – are people like your school some ways to bring the cost down: principal. Your committee’s school representative needs to provide the • Hire the chair covers and sashes and get a group of volunteers to fit committee with a comprehensive them. (This may be a job to ask of list to ensure no-one is forgotten. parents since you may be tied up 16 how to organise a formal MELBOURNE 2012
at the hairdressers!) Allow at least 20 minutes per table of ten. For an event with 40 tables, that’s 14 hours’ work – or seven volunteers working flat out for two hours.
4. Menus and place cards The Menu and Place cards subcommittee can unleash their creative skills to make these, continuing with the night’s theme. Hand-made cards • Disposable chair covers are new and scrapbooking takes time but the to the market. They cost around results will be memorable keepsakes. $3 each and are not as time- Your menu card should also include: consuming to fit. • thank-you’s to business sponsors 2. Balloons • space for signatures and well Balloons are a great way to fill a wishes large space economically and you • some background information on have heaps of creative options: from the theme. a simple bunch of balloons on each table to a scatter of loose balloons 5. Props over the dance floor or a net drop to Props can be hired to complement any theme. finish the night. For more dramatic effects, use giant 90cm balloons, exploding balloons and exploding balloon walls. Foil balloons provide an exciting way of theming your event. Foil stars are a great complement to any Hollywood theme. 3. Flowers Flowers are a classic table decoration. A floral centrepiece is simple, clean and timeless. For something a little more upbeat, use exotic flowers and cane.
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6. Lighting Your theme may be to die-for but if no one can see it, the effect will be lost. The right lighting creates ambience. A professional theming company will be onto this. If you’re doing your own decorating, ask a professional lighting company for advice and help. 7. Sound Your evening’s entertainment determines your sound needs. Professional DJs will provide their own sound systems, as will bands. But there are inevitably official moments – like speeches – and you will need a good PA system for that.
Handling the guest list Your school will have rules about partners (e.g. whether they must come from your own school if it’s coed or have to be school-age). RSVP – responding to the invitation to attend – is a must. Accurate records need to be kept of who is coming – and who’s not. The Invitation sub-committee will need a complete list of who has been invited and will need to work closely with the Treasurer to make sure everyone pays.
The invitation may also include preformal drinks that include family Are you showing a Powerpoint – members. Keep track of these like a retrospective of your years at numbers too. the school? Have you organised the Sponsorship equipment for that? Local business sponsorships can 8. Favours A favour is a little gift given to offset the cost of holding your formal. each guest. It may be as simple as They can provide: a heart or star shaped chocolate or • financial assistance as beautiful as a hand-crafted glass • in-kind help. ornament with the school name and But remember: if there are other year painted on it. schools in your area, you won’t be the only one seeking their support. That means you need to know how to ask and what to offer in return.
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The Boulevard Restaurant is the perfect venue to hold your School Formal. We cater for up to 180 guests with a dance floor for a sit down dinner. Our experienced team and function co-ordinators will be able to assist with a tailored package, menus, flowers, decorations, DJ’s.
the boulevard restaurant & Functions
You will feel like you are at the ‘Oscars’ when your Limo or Hummer pulls up in our large horseshoe driveway at the entrance of the venue, with all the paparazzi waiting to take photos of you!
121 studley Park road Kew 3101 tel 03 9852 8144 info@theboulevard.com.au
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Get ready in style for the biggest night of your school year, with FormalStyle. Keep track of dress designs, your formal budget, appointments and keepsakes for your school formal. FormalStyle is elegant and practical at the same time – a place to record everything about this exciting event.
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Start by looking within your school community.
Fundraising
Fundraising is another way to offset Whose parents run or manage your costs. Consider a product drive. businesses that may be helpful? Visit www.fundraisingdirectory.com. Think office supplies, caterers, party au for a huge range of ideas. hire, even venues. Some hot tips for teens Could they supply goods or • chocolates products at competitive rates or • cookie dough better still donate in return for free • glow products advertising? Looking further afield, think of businesses that your student group – and families -- uses a lot locally: hairdressers, nail salons, gyms, ice creameries, pizza parlours, fashion boutiques, bike shops, fast food outlets, petrol stations; the list goes on.
Post-formal activities
This is a contentious issue. Students want to party on – but many schools have laid down the law and said ‘no’. The committee’s school representative will be able to tell you what the school policy is. The committee is obliged to work closely You want to ask them in the nicest with the school to ensure all guests way to help subsidise your event know what that stand is. with a small cash donation. In return, their business can be mentioned. Have a great time! You may want to have a tiered level The most important thing to of sponsorship: printed mention remember is to have a wonderful in the night’s program; mention in time! Feel fabulous and enjoy your event! speeches; and signage. Remember: sponsorships also reflect on your school. Work closely with the school representative to make sure sponsors fit with the school’s image and beliefs.
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Search for Melbourne Formal Suppliers: Clicking on a category will perform a search for Melbourne Suppliers • Beauty Salons / Tanning / Make-up • Catering and Venues • Dance Studios • DJ’s & Entertainment • Event Decorators and Organisers • Fabrics & Dressmakers • Florists • Formal Dresses • Formal Suits and Hire • Fundraising • Hairstyling & Accessories • Jewellery & Accessories • Limousines / Transport • Lingerie • Photography • Security • Shoes • Staging & AV 24 how to organise a formal MELBOURNE 2012