Q. You said "discounts"?!? I'm listening! The economy is bonkers but my child is still bonkers about Princesses!
A. If money is the deciding factor for you, contact us! Random factors that are too complex to lay out here often let us give families varying discounts.
* Sometimes your date is slow or maybe you're willing to move your party to a less popular day (sometimes Sundays) or time(later on a Saturday or Sunday)
* Sometimes your location or character fits great with what we've already got booked that day. Also when the economy went Cuckoo (I had to look that up to spell it!) we had enough scheduling experience to try some innovative moves with confidence...
* Sometimes some parties that can give an us an arrival window rather than requiring an exact arrival time, or if you can give your top 3 character choices those factors can impact the whole driving schedule for the whole staff - saving gas and time and smiles! Then we can often give you a discount. But time or character flexibility isn't required to ask for a discount! And for those rare day-long family fiestas that can afford a 15-45 minute flexibility, we'll still always know by the day before and be able to tell you who and when will be there! We always know by then so you can plan. Our normal shows book a specific character at a specific time and that's what we deliver! To date we've done it 15,000 times.
Kris performed for 2,000 parties!
Click HERE for her article on tips for parents!
We can give discounts on certain times, dates, or on first, second or third characters! Here's a true example, last weekend a performer had a real curtain call for a real professional dance production they are in, at a certain evening time in a specific city. Since it was so specific and not something we could trifle with, she'd been left wide-open for a party since none of the normal shows fit. A mom called last minute and booked her for almost 40% off because her party fit perfectly! We're kind of like buying a plane ticket! Just like a plane ticket, if you know what you want and want to count on it 100% NOW, it's best to book it 100% now, but if you're some of these, ask for a discount: weekdays, flexible on character or timing, Sundays, last minute, adding an addional performer...and sometimes something we can't predict. Maybe the Fairy is already in your city!
Call to ask! 1-888-5-MAGIC-5 or email magicprincesskris@gmail.com
Q. Do you do one hour performances?
A. In short, yes, but first here's why we've consciously chosen to do more 1.5 hours parties. If you go into "Meet the Owner" you'll get to know Kris, who was a preschool teacher for 2-3 year olds when she opened Magic Princess. When she came along, you could only get big mascot suited characters (like the kinds you'll see at theme parks, with huge heads and the faces covered) or full white-faced clowns. There wan't much in the Fairy-Princess-who-actually-does-fun-things-like-magic-rather-than-just-charge-a-lot-to-stand-there-and-look-pretty-genre! She kind of revolutionized things and with that, she made a bold move, making 1.5 hours the standard, rather than the former hour standard in the industry. It's her thing. She says, "Most parents are surprised when they hear we stay 1.5 hours until they know a few things. Firstly, we're about the same price for 1.5 hours or less than a normal clown's one hour. Secondly, parent's often have the misnomer that everything must stop when we get there and can only resume once we leave, and they need to get other things done like feeding the kids and doing birthday cake or opening presents. They don't realize our visit is organic, that we spend time with the kids, like a friend or guest of the party and thay they can keep feeding them, do cake while we're there...anything. Also my real reason for offering mainly 1.5 hours is kids party sizes are growing and with the ages of kids we usually perform for an hour just isn't enough time to really develop rapport. The same birthday child who's internally thrilled her favorite princess is there but can't show it just yet because she's shy or overwhelmed by the scene...will be climbing on me and telling me her big secrets about an hour into the visit. I don't like to be leaving around then. I like to have more time to spend with her!"
Now that you've peeked into our worldview about kids...we'll still say, yes we will arrange a one hour performance if you'd like - or even shorter. You can now order and book an hour online, or just call us!
Q. What if I book 100% and my child changes their mind on the character?
A. In most every case, about 90% of the time we can change it, totally for free with no problems. Your biggest problem is praying you didn't already buy plates with that character! Ha. 
On our end, it's usually no big deal. We want to be really clear, not being sure about the character, usually because the parents are waiting on a young person's changing whim, is not a good reason to wait to schedule us. Here's our fun trick we call "The Lip Gloss Trick" which is really only for you, the parent, when you've already gotten $200 worth of Snow White party decor and now she's asking for a clown or something! If this happens to you, you aren't alone! A few days before the party, watch Snow White (or whomever you've got coming) together. Sweetly praise her similarities to the character, "You know honey, your kindness toward animals really reminds me of Snow White!" or "I think you can sing as well as Snow White!" and then at the end of the movie surprise her with the ultimate child's dream: a little lipgloss (or container of sparkles or bubbles or Chapstick - you get the idea - maybe $3 and awesome!). If our visit is not a surprise you can say something like, "Snow White told me to give this to you, to let you know she is coming to your party!" or if we are a surprise you can keep it vague, saying, "Wow, Snow White is fun!" That way, you'll see an attitude change that will save you $200 more on new and different party supplies!
. Kris performed for 2,000 parties!
Click HERE for an ARTICLE she wrote on tips for parents!
Q. Should I keep you as a surprise or should I tell my child?
A. That's up to you! We suggest basing that on their personality. Do they tend to be overwhelmed or thrilled at parties? We'd love to know about your child's personality and anything special you'd like us to do or say. We can advise on keeping it a secret or fun ways to tell them if you're going to tell them.
* You might choose to warm them up to it, without necessary breaking the secret by showing them one of our videos. "What would it be like if someone kind of like this person came to your party?" "What if she twisted balloons?"
* You might want to write a letter together with your child inviting the character! You can ceremoniously stamp it, even with a real stamp, and/or walk it to the mail box and send it off. If they are too young to write, they can dictate the letter to you and you can say, "What if you draw a picture of our family or our house, so she'll know what to look for?" Be sure to include their drawing! It is precious. You can choose to write back to her or not, as the character, accepting the invitation or just leave it mysterious, "My dear friend, I hope I can make it!" To make the incoming letter from the character look more authentic, stuff in amidst junk mail and bills. "Just some more normal mail, wait...what it this?!" Open it and read it together!
* You are welcome to call us and we'll talk to your child in character over the phone! We'll even sing or play music, it is amazing! See the next question "Will you really talk to my child in character over the phone right now?"
Q. Will you really talk to my child as a Fairy or Snow White or Ariel or whomever over the phone right now too?
A. Absolutely! We love that parents know we do this! Some parents rely on us throughout the 
year for this free, funny service. Parents who know us will call with a simple, "Cinderella, this is Samantha Jamison, you know Taylor's mom? Well she is right here and she's having a hard time sharing with her brother. Can you please talk to her for a minute about sharing, Cinderella?" It is the BEST part of our day when this happens. A famous character talking to kids goes a loooooong way for toilet training, sharing issues, tantrums, anything!
One of our favorite voicemails we ever received was a mom we know named Marie who said this would be fine to share. She just called with her daughter next to her, clearly listening and said, "Hello, Santa, this is Marie. (Her daughter's name) would like to let you know she's like "The Little Petshop" for Christmas and that she's working very hard today to be good to be able to get it. She is trying hard to listen to mommy today so you will bring her the toy she wants to most. Well, thank you Santa. We just wanted to tell you."
Q. You mentioned something about
being willing to say special things to my child, what did you mean?
A. Once in a while a parent will tell us something unique about their child or something significant they are going through and ask us to acknowledge it, in character. Our owner Kris was a preschool teacher and then as she was getting her doctorate in psychology when she trained to work with Hospice as a grief and loss support person for children who were losing a parent. As Magic Princesses it isn't our role to enter
that terrain, but our approach to children is informed by Kris' worldview about kids. Kids really listen to what adults say to them. They listen even more when it comes from a Fairytale character. It means a lot when a Mermaid says, "I heard you've been using the potty!" or when Snow White says, "I heard you are a new big sister! That is an important job and I am so proud of you. It can be a big change, how is it going for you? I can't wait to tell my friends Princess Tiana and Princess Aurora all about your being a big sister! I remember when Ariel had a new baby siste
r, she was excited too, just like you! Does the baby cry? Ariel always said the baby would cry, but of course mermaid babies sing in bubbles too! Do you think your baby sister will sing one day?"
Q. Cute stories! Tell me some more!
A. Okay, we only tell these families' great stories because we have their permission.
Just recently a mom told us that every year on the night before her daughter's birthday they go into the yard and plant "Lolipop Seeds." After her daughter goes to bed, the mom does a little magic of her own and in the morning, they wake to find the yard full of newborn lolipops growing! We thought it'd be fun to add the tradition of "picking" them to give as party favors to dear friends at the party, or to loved ones!
Another mom told us about how she'd taken her daughter to see Disney on Ice. As they bungled through the cro
wd toward the parking lot, she realized they didn't have her daughter's beloved little princess purse. When the child inevitably discovered it in the car, the mom told us, "I don't like to lie to my kids, but you have to understand the desperation. She was on the verge of a tantrum and we were stuck in the stadium parking lots so I said, 'Honey, you know what happened? When you were in the bathroom with Dad, Cinderella walked right up to me and saw your purse and said itwas so beautiful she'd love to borrow it to take to a ball!" It worked! The child was fascinated and flattered! Cinderella had borrowed her purse! But weeks later, she began to ask a lot of questions about why Cinderella wasn't returning it. That's when the mom called us! We sent Cinderella to the child's birthday and the mom slipped us a replacement purse to give to the child saying, "I'm sorry! Snow White loved it and hoped she could please keep it? She sent this one to replace it! We hope you like it!"
Once a family called us sheepishly to ask for a unique favor. Their 80 year old grandfather had collected Snow Whi
te memorabilia his entire life. He had all the classic drawings, figurines, and music. They were planning a surprise birthday party for him. He was shocked and
Snow White told us she had to hold back tears when she knocked on his door, surprised him and escorted him to his party!
One of our favorite stories is actually from within the company! Magic Princess Christine (now on VH1 for eight weeks - see the above side note) had moved from our San Francisco Area Kingdom to open our Los Angeles Kingdom and to chase her big dream of acting. She started dating an old high school friend, Justin, who was just thrilled because he'd always had a crush on her! Justin called our owner Kris and arranged a big secret. Together they planted an entirely fake party on Christine's party performance schedule. For extra fun they made it look like a real nightmare of a party too! They put a ridiculous amount of kids with an impossible amount of activities to get done. Of course, when Christine arrived to the "party" there was no party to be found, only her Prince Justin waiting there instead, ready to surprise her with a day together in Disneyland! They rode the Whirling Tea Cups and the rest is history!
Q. Can you walk me through a typical party?
A. Every single party is different and we do thousands of special requests (like "Coming down the stairs" per one child's specific vision), uncommon venues (like being fairies who escort the Easter Bunny from a helicopter at the Air Museum), and different types of events (this writer just went to Safeway's Corporate Headquarters and a family's private backyard in one day last weekend!), so this stereotypic party plan is completely adjustable.
About 80% of the time, you contact us and choose a character and usually 3 activities, depending on the estimated number of kids coming. We take your "order" online or over the phone. You use a Visa or Mastercard to pay in full, make a partial deposit payment (or sometimes we
can arrange different payment like live at the event, etc) and we'll email you a confirmation so you have written record of the agreement. Yay. You carry on and plan the great party. You do not need to confirm, unless you'd like to. Parents get incredibly busy and so we adopted a clear policy that even if you book us a huge amount of time, say nine months in advance, unless you contact us to cancel, we're going to show on that day and time, no matter what. We don't count on connecting with you week of, as that practice used to leave a trail of parents who just didn't have time to talk week of the even who'd then be insecure about the performer. No more. Now we email a confirmation email when you book us and that's that. You don't need to call again, unless you'd like to. If you didn't tell us call it off, we're coming. Rain or shine, call or not.
On the party date and time we'll arrive in character, already dressed and we'll knock on the door, unless you've let us know
you'd rather we do something like call your cell phone on arrival if you have a secret plan to enact! We typically stay for 1.5 hours, we bring everything we need with us and most often we'll start with a show since it helps build rapport. Starting with a show is also a great
move because if you've ever worked with groups of kids you know they are most curious in the beginning and we want to capitalize on having their raptured attentio
n early
in the visit. You can tell us where you'd like us to perform, inside or outside are both fine or you can ask us to look around your home or venue to suggest a spot. The kids usually sit on the floor or grass around us, though chairs are fine too. You can check out all of our shows on the Activities page
!
After the show parents most often have us do Face Painting and then Balloon Animals for all the kids. Yes! One performer can do all of these things! That's what a Magic Princess is! We can also add a Sing-A-Long or change out activities for others - like Make Overs, SuperHero Lessons...see the bottom of our activities page! Yes! It's also big fun to try and do the birthday ca
ke while we're there. That often depends on how many kids you'll have, which effects what we have time to get through. If you really want us there for cake - which is an excellent spot to take a group photo because the kids are naturally collected - ask us about a discounted second character to make activities go faster, or to extend the time or limit other activites if need be.
Q. Do I need to contact you the week of to confirm?
A. We touched this a bit in last question too. No, you don't need to call but you can if you'd like to.
On our end, from the moment you tell us it is 100%, we're coming 100%. When you book online or over the phone, we'll email you a confirmation. Then we're coming 100%. We don't count on needing to hear from you again, since we know parents get unbelievably busy the days before the party.
Q. How do I apply to work for Magic Princess? This looks fun and I love kids!
A. We typically audition actors, models, people in the middle of their B.A. or with completed B.A.s in performing arts, visual arts,
dance, theater, music, or voice, but w have hired some exceptional staff who had none of these things but were incredible with kids. Princess Joy was literally studying Rocket Science. We've hired someone still in High School who'd been in 16 musicals. Go to "Apply" under the "Informat
ion and Cast" tab! Keep in mind, our owner, Kris has a eclectic background herself: trained by Hospice to do Grief Support for kids losing a parent, is a stage singer-songwriter and regularly can be found at Chabot Space and Science Center playing an astronaut in a space simulator for kids! She is open to all kinds of qualifications and can tell right off if you're made of magic stuff!
Q. What is a "Magic Princess" in concrete terms?
A. Good question! It gets confusing.
Magic Princess is the name of our company founded by Kris ten years ago.
She is the Original Magic Princess herself and has done 2,000 shows, but not only as a princess, as tons of other characters too!
A Magic Princess is also what we call our performers, anyone who's been selected by and trained by Kris, but they play more than princesses! to be a Magic Princess they must know everything: Magic, Puppets, Songs, Games, Face Painting, Balloons and there really is a secret graduation ceremony they go through! To get a behind-the-scenes peek at our trainings check out our Videos.
"The Magic Princess" or "Ballerina Fairy Princess" is also actually the name of one of our many costumes/characters. It is something parents choose, and it is our most popular costume by far! If is a professional ballerina tutu, wings, a tiara...she is a child's dream. She is a Fairy and a Ballerina and a Princess! Any of us can play The Magic Princess / Ballerina Fairy Princess.
Q. What is a "Magic Princess" in terms of the heart?
A. Okay, this is the first time we're saying this publicly - ever! Very insider staff Kris has a concept called, "A Real Magic Princess."
After managing often young actors for years and years, our owner says:
"Almost everybody likes kids, but it takes way more than that to be a Real Magic Princess. I've hired the wrong kind of actresses before, but don't last long. A Real Magic Princess, though they are often young, and though they are often in professional productions, with performance and rehearsal and grad school applications pushing on them, they treat being a Magic Princess more preciously than I imagine most folks their age treat other 'jobs.' A Real Magic Princess knows what's at stake. They inherently recognize parents are counting on them. They often seem very close in heart still to their own childhood. They don't see this as 'clocking in' to 'work.' They understand little dreams are at stake. They forge relationships with families during a beautiful moment. They are the gals who only retire their crown for things like grad school and when they do it they cry.They are the gals who parents calls me years later and remember their name! 'How is Candice?' A Real Magic Princess sneaks aside to text me back quickly and tell me she can swing it to cover a last minute show since it is raining and the mom cancelled the bounce house and now needs some help fast! A Real Magic Princess recognizes her special role in the life of a child and he ability to make or break an event that's not replaceable.
When a performer really goes above and beyond I'm known to call them and say, 'You know, I've known you for years and today you really showed you're a Real Magic Princess, and that can't be taught."
Q. Is there anything you need from me? Anything I need to do now that I've hired you to come?
A. Not really. Thanks for asking!
We perform from this website but a lot of our shows come in from events agencies (Who mark us up by the way! so if you see our pictures there too - book direct for a better deal!) who often don't even tell us if the address we've been given is a corporate picnic, fancy restaurant, backyard, park...it can be anything! That means we're ready for anything and we're self-contained, by design!
That said if you'd like to be sure we have access to drinking water and a cup of water for our face paints, that's awesome!
One handy pointer is that choosing the position for the show carefully will makes worlds of difference in the sound quality for the kids. It took years to learn this basic party fact. The adults are going to chat. Ha. That's normal. They need to talk about schools and salsa and whatever it is they talk about (we're not too sure - ha!)...and we've also learned the adults congregate wherever you put the food! We love to joke, "I bet if you put the food in some obscure hallway, before long you'd find every guest hanging out in the dark hallway!" Ha. So here's one little thing you can do that will go a long way. If you put the food in one area and the performer in another you'll find the party is naturally a better venue for the show. It just works! The kids can hear us better. We also try to not perform in front of windows or open hallways if we can - that way you'll get better photos with better less and less distractions behind us! If you aren't sure, just ask us on arrival to pick a spot!
Click Here to Book Online Now or Call Us 1-888-562-4425
A. You can book 100% online right here, with no payment (we'll contact you to plan payment), with only $10, with half payment or with full payment now. You can also call us, text us or email us. How's that for options?
