Performance Parties

If you want to get rid of three packages of cheese, a bag of grapes, three packages of crackers, two batches of chocolate chip cookies, an almond cake, and two pans of brownies, just invite 2/3 of your piano students over for a party.  We ran out of refreshments last year at the performance party, so I doubled what I planned to serve, and then strategically placed only half of the refreshments out at each party.  At the first party there were 11 students second grade and under and two teenagers.  At the second party there were seven students in grades 3-6 and two teenagers.  At the end of the party, there was half of a piece of almond cake left.  I kid you not.

It was a wild and crazy afternoon, but a lot of fun.  I think the students had fun too.  Everyone played one or two pieces that they have enjoyed learning this year, and then attacked the snack table.  I sent the first group home on a sugar high.  They were pretty bouncy by the time they left. I managed to get a quick picture:

As you can see, a few of them stopped bouncing enough to capture with my camera.  Not all the students are visible.  Some were hiding under the piano and under the bench, and others were just kind of hopping around by that point.  (That’s what seven small brownies can do to a small body).

I scrambled to refill all the refreshments before the next party, and those kids came IN the door bouncing.  Although the audiences were a bit, well, squirmy at both parties due to the anticipation of bottomless snacks, everyone played well.  I didn’t manage to capture a picture of the second group because we were preoccupied with a riveting and insanely loud and boisterous game of musical jeopardy up until the moment they left.

Overall, I would consider the second annual performance party a rousing success.

I can’t imagine how much food I will go through when my kidlets are teenagers and bring over their friends.