By Lisa J Mansell
So you want to throw a party?
But you want to do something different, something no one has seen or experienced before. You are not content to plan another birthday party with the same theme, the same cake, the same games that everyone else does. So what do you do? Where do you start?
The basis of any good event is the organization and preparation leading up to it. However, it is the gimmick or the theme that makes the party memorable. This takes some imagination and creativity.
As the Community Affairs Director for the Church of Scientology in Clearwater, I have, In the last few years, produced some unique events – a Happy (Victorian) Halloween Dinner, a Beauty and Beast Ball and a Summer Camp Themed 4th of July celebration to name a few.
Studying Scientology has helped me to be more creative in what I do, and this includes creating events that are hopefully memorable. There are many passages, chapters and memorable quotes from any one of the tens of millions of published words, recorded lectures and films by Scientology’s founder, L. Ron Hubbard.
But for the sake of simplicity, I will start with one of the basic Scientology references and one of the most basic terms when it comes to creating anything – the book is Self Analysis and the term is “imagination.” In this book Mr. Hubbard defined imagination as “the postulating of images or the assembly of perceptions into creations as you desire them.”
First of all, what does he mean by ‘postulating’? Pertinent to the subject of creating events, Mr. Hubbard defines postulating as “to put something forth (so as to exist); create.”
Film-makers, authors, artists do this all the time. A director has a vision for the scene he wants to shoot and arranges the actors, lighting, camera, etc so that his vision comes to life. On a lesser scale, a person cooking a meal for themselves has an idea of what they want to eat, and then puts the ingredients together to create that.
So what are you postulating your event to be? Is it a solemn, inspirational ceremony? An elegant dinner? A casual party around the pool? An opportunity to get some friends together? A chance to show off your barbeque skills?
Secondly, what mood or atmosphere (‘assembly of perceptions’) do you want to create? Do you picture ladies in cocktail dresses and men in business suits sipping champagne and making selections from a gourmet cheese display? Or do you see a happy gaggle of teenage girls making their own pizzas while they listen to their favorite music?
Once you establish these things, it is easier to work out how you will communicate that mood and what theme might encompass that. For example, I wanted to have a tea party – a traditional one with small sandwiches, small sweets, scones and clotted cream. However, I did not want it to be the familiar English-style tea with lots of roses and frilly touches – especially as I wanted to have men feel comfortable being there!
So, what are some concepts would encompass this? I had just finished reading a book about British settlements in Africa and was charmed by how the settlers would live in the most primitive of situations, but still had their China cups, silver and classical music. Ah. I was on to something.
What about a High Adventure Tea?
So what represents the idea of high adventure but still managed to be elegant? The Orient Express! So I Google Image searched it, looked through Indulgy and Pinterest and pretty soon had enough photos to put together a full décor plan, invitations and even special “passports” that each guest would get when they arrived.
The tea party was held at the Fort Harrison, the Church’s religious retreat in Clearwater, FL and benefitted a local community arts group. It was very successful and I am already looking at what we will do next year. However, it all comes back to postulating an image and putting together the atmosphere and experience that I wanted the audience to have – i.e., using my imagination.
So what about you? What type of event or party have you always wanted to have? Close your eyes and take a look – you may surprise yourself with an idea that will be the party of your life.