want to start an entertainment company, don't know where to start

[julian]

Hi everyone, this is my first post here. I've been juggling for about 4
years. I'm quite comfortable with 3 balls (most tricks short of mills and
rubenstein etc). I can juggle four, but not anything special. Other things I can juggle include clubs and rings. I taught
myself how to make balloon animals. I can do some tricks with devil sticks. I intend on learning how to do diabolo and maybe plate spinning over the next few months

Anyway, let me give a bit of context to my question. I'm currently in my
final year of high school, and my school has a tradition that all graduating
students do a project in their final year as a requirement for graduating.
The types of projects are quite eclectic-one friend is concocting and
marketing hot sauce, another is building a foosball table, another is
building and selling aquariums made from computers... The list goes on.

For my project, I've decided to start an entertainment company, or
specifically, doing gigs at children's birthday parties. My goal is not to
make oodles of money. Rather, I'd like to learn some entrepreneurial (business plan, book keeping, publicity etc) skills while doing somethign I enjoy (juggling!). I realize my
skills aren't nearly up to the calibre of most professional entertainers,
but hopefully, that won't defer me too much.

However, I'm almost clueless as to how I should go about doing this.
Obviously, I have to hone my skills before my first gig. I plan to do maybe
3 or 4 gigs from April to early June. My company will be pretty ephemeral-if I like what I do, I'll continue into the summer. Like I say, it's more for the
experience, rather than the end profit if you're wondering about the low
number of intended performances. I think I would like to include juggling,
balloon animals, devil sticks, diabolo and maybe a few magic tricks in my
act.

What's the best way to plan an act? Would I need a gimmick? How do I plan
the order of my tricks? What kind of music? How do I market myself? How
much should I charge (remember, i'm an extreme beginner, and am willing to sell myself at bottom prices so I get clients and experience)? Is this even the right place to ask these questions? Any books, websites that might be useful for me?

Thanks for your help!

[Lynneski]

Hey, Julian. I think it's admirable (even if you might find the foolhardy part later)to want to take advantage of your entreprenurial bent and the skill set you've evolved to date. I suggest you look into resources your municipality offers (through maybe the City's Business development office, your local library, maybe some of the local banks) in setting up a new business. There are often many resources available for free - lots that will help you research and develop a business plan, perhaps even conduct some market research. You can look at Small Business Magazine, Home Business, and similar titles (mayhap at the library) for basic structures and goal setting. A few net searches or a trip to a helpful librarian will uncover a wealth of useful things.

How many parties/events have you done so far? Can you ask the folks who hired you for a letter of reference? A list of the parents of the kids who attended the parties at which you performed (they all have kids who have birthdays!)? Can you package a unique birthday experience that's not just another clown-down-the-street, offer a moral (great with church groups),scientific (a la Mad Science, museum experiences and similar), or hands-on (kids love to learn how to make stuff or do a simple magic trick) angle to what you present?

Do you know what you need to charge to cover your costs? What other birthday entertainers charge in your area? What parties cost at Chucky Cheese, museums, play centres and other options available to parents?

There are way more questions than answers facing you. Talk to your teacher about the scope of your project.

I'll leave the part about how to put a show together to the experts in our midst.