Master of Celebrations

Excerpt from my book: The Master of Celebrations guide to PRACTICAL MAGIC

One of the things I currently do is produce entertainment for and MC Private Events. Most people understand emcee (MC) to mean master of ceremonies and you know these people as the ones on the microphone that lead the way through an event. For me this is a world of wondrous milestones such as (finding the love of your life) weddings or (making it from childhood to the beginnings of maturity and adulthood) mitzvahs, I found myself investing everything I had into celebrating people’s lives as if it were my very own family. It didn’t matter that I did not know my clients before, or maybe even very well leading up to the party. Or that I don't know their guests at all. On this day, they are me and I am them. And because I always want the very best experiences for myself, they shall have the same if not better.

And in that realization that this was so important to me, I evolved beyond being a master of ceremonies into a Master of Celebrations. The difference is in being able to do everything necessary to create ease and effortlessness of flow so the circumstances of the party do not block or distract from the ability to celebrate itself, while at the same time being able to lead and engage people into their greatest levels of joy.

To be a Master of Celebrations does not mean I am a Master. The label means nothing; it’s simply a way to describe what is indescribable. It does not mean I have arrived and there is no one better than me. It means I’m actively practicing Mastery so I can continue to perform at highly proficient and enlightened levels to keep creating more love, wonder and excitement for everyone. It also does not mean I have finished learning everything. There are always new situations being presented asking me to become more, find more, give more. It just means that I have invested and return with a high level of awareness, ability and efficiency to go to deeper places and create with ever expanding tools.

I love being a Master of Celebrations and think it's one of the greatest things anyone can ever do to appreciate and celebrate the aliveness of life. It gives me great joy to be able to express that with my clients. It brings me closer to them and them closer to me.

Party Central 2008 - The Highlights for January through April

So far 2008 has been the year of the kid's party.

The IBM Conference Center in Palisades NY set the stage for the first mitzvah of the year. Jeremy Chaitin’s mitzvah rocked in 2008. Jennifer and Stu set a cool ski-disco setting bathed in purple and blues. This was a mixed event resort-like party while the adults wined and dined with dual bars on the dance floor, and the kids partied it up big. This is an up and coming spot for mitzvahs.

Meirav Weintraub daughter of Rabbi Simkha Weintraub's daughter had an awesome kid’s only party at Kane Street Synagogue in Brooklyn. We turned the room into a cool VIP lounge. See the blue room below.

Gabi Weintraub, Meirav’s cousin and son of Rabbi Sam Weintraub of Kane Street Synagogue converted the gym of the Brooklyn Heights Montessori School to a rock club and another hip kid’s party took flight.

Lana Cohen had to be one of the sweetest and nicest kids ever on a gorgeous day at the Prospect Park Picnic House again in Brooklyn. This was our second mitzvah with Linda Aponte/Jason Cohen and the family has a huge place in our hearts.

A party that rocked 2008 to its knees was David Ginsberg’s mitzvah party at Water Street Restaurant in Brooklyn. The party in the underwater lounge kicked sold out rave. The kids barely stopped dancing and jumping long enough to grab some buffet food and return. Like a Guinness Book of World Records for most sweat in any 4 hours by kids under 15. One of the hippest joints to have a party in Brooklyn or Manhattan. Call Ry at Water Street and tell him we sent you.

Looking forward to many more parties and highlights with each of you. Enjoy the Spring! MS

The Return of the Ultimate Games Master

With the arrival of spring there is always a few things to look

forward to. Opening day at the baseball stadiums, Tiger Woods

at the Masters and the US Open, The Botanical Gardens in full bloom, those of us with allergies also in full bloom.

And of course a sense of renewal. It’s also a time for reinvention.

All our former clients and their guests have seen many of the skills and games we do with the kids during the cocktail hour of LSNY events. Few know the origin of these skills and games.

While LSNY was an up and coming company, I worked for numerous other entertainment companies in many different capacities: Dancer, MC, improvisational comic, counselor and skills and games person.

In the early days it was as a dancer and games master where I really thrived and excelled the crowds, particularly kids. Over a 4 year period that’s what I became best known for the skills and games. There were occasions at events where various bands would ask me to please take a break because too many kids were engrossed and captivated with what we were playing.

Many of those same skills and games are still part of the LSNY experience today. Actually today we have a little over 50 of the most compelling interactive skills and games ever to grace a party. And many of them can only be found through LSNY.

This spring I’ve begun to offer my the ULTIMATE GAMES MASTER as a independently from LSNY on the open dates that we have. A few planners and companies have jumped on the wagon and a whole new clientele with completely different styles of parties are being thrilled by Maestro Michael Sage.

So out of the past comes a reinvention for the future. The Ultimate Games Master (UGM) returns. If you have friends or family having a kid's party of any kind, whether they have booked their entertainment or not, Maestro Michael Sage, the UGM would be an incredible addition to their event. It’s an amazing amount of entertainment and fun from just one person. Any questions give us a call. 201 475-5769

Do you need an MC at Events - Part 5

The MC has the task to move people and events from one place to another and make it seamless. The bride and groom chose to dance alone for the entire 1^st dance song which is a rarity nowadays. That decision creates a task for the MC. How do you manage 200 people who are standing around a dance floor waiting to know what to do? Usually you either sit them or dance them. Here it was a Jewish/Irish wedding and they wanted to do a Hora (traditional Jewish dance) right afterward. Again the sophistication of the segue will make or break this moment. A good 2/3rds of the party had never done a Hora before. The MC creates the excitement and to give fun direction for this and if done right it before it will work. Here I caught it just right and it became one of the liveliest Horas ever at a wedding. We had women in the inside circle and guys on the outside and interchanging, and they were just going with the instruction because it was fun. When they look back at that on video they will be amazed at how exciting and crazy it was.

A top MC will also be able to lead and direct live and create live as it’s happening. And the people don’t need to know how to do anything. Imagine trying to do that without an MC. It is very difficult. Bands rarely even know how to lead these dances well or when to let them breathe.

Anyone who’s been to a few weddings knows how deadly toasts can become. I was at a wedding last week where the toasts of 2 people went on for 30 minutes. To take up 30 minutes of someone’s wedding with something you can say in 5 minutes is just unfortunate and a drag for everyone. The toasts can happen by themselves of course, but what would you do after a 30-minute toast? There was a friend of the bride’s who was going to sing a song to the bride and groom scheduled to go on after the toasts. I went out at the 15-minute mark and told him I have to cut you here, because these are too long. I promise to get you on at a time that will be more appropriate. He was very unhappy because he was set to go on – and got himself all ready. But I put him on ½ way through dinner and had the bride and groom sit on the dance floor with him as he played. He had the undivided attention of everyone. He thanked me profusely afterward saying “you were SO right.” This is another gift of a top MC: good decision making and timing. He manages the party in the moment so it doesn’t crumble into an abyss.

Toasts with a top MC orchestrating as opposed to no MC, the beginning is not jarring. There’s a flow from the ending of the last segment to being seated to getting people ready for the toasts, to making the ‘toaster’ feel relaxed and confident with the microphone, to the perfect segue from one to the next, again not announcing but flowing in conversation. At this event there were 4 toasts to be made and 4 champagne glasses on the table. After the second toast I asked everyone to raise a glass again and informed the guests there were 2 more to go so by the end everyone will have a nice little buzz going. This made a nice laugh for everyone and provided an easy transition for the two more to come. It also created a relaxation point for the next speaker.

Next up the meat and potatoes of the wedding.

Do you need an MC at Events - Part 4

The MC starts the positive vibe right off the bat with the bridal party. He goes to them, meets them and has some laughs, loosens them up, and infuses them with the energy to have fun, and be lively. It’s a great moment pre-entrance. It’s like rallying the team for the big game. I’ve personally had bridal parties laughing and whooping and enjoying themselves so much that the party is set in motion right then and there. The guests in the ballroom can hear them and the buzz of the “life” of the party has already begun. This is no easy task with a bunch of folks in mourning, but to remove peoples’ nervousness and change it to excitement is a great ability. Brides and grooms that are hiring the DJ who say we don’t need an MC would miss this incredible opportunity. And should anything unfortunate precede their affair, they would never have the capacity to do this pre-party rally-jump-start.

Secondly without an MC it is virtually impossible to get the same level of excitement and emotion from the crowd during an entrance. The one man DJ is of course familiar with entrances and knows how to do them, but the ‘top’ MC makes it an EXPERIENCE to enjoy and savor. He enhances the entrance with live commentary perfect to the moment. The DJ is often times tasked with playing 3 to 9 pieces of music at the exact cue points for each entrance, he cannot be focused on being “LIVE” with the entrances as they are happening. The MC builds and connects with the crowd escalating to the crescendo of Mr and Mrs. and the guests emotions rise with him. Imagine the quality of the pictures and video as well. That’s a moment in time meant to relish forever.

The first dance one would think is a simple enough job to do, and it is. But how is it set up? The MC makes sure their family; friends and guests surround them with support and love. If it is elected he makes the perfect transition to bring them on the floor with them. If not he finds a way to create the perfect segue to the next section - the crowd dancing. This can be the difference in having a sporadic indifferent dance floor and a crowd that WANTS and NEEDS to be out there. Without an MC perfect segues are virtually impossible. It is in fact the perfect segues that makes the ‘top’ MC the Master of Ceremonies and indispensable for important events. Couples without an MC cannot set this up for themselves and direct folks in this way. Single DJs who are also talking cannot create perfect in the moment segues, it’s just not possible for them to concentrate that kind of effort and take care of their own musical cuing and segues.