Johnnie Worshippers 20th Birthday

by Kari
(Muscatine, Iowa, USA)

Occasion: John's 20th Birthday

Costumes

Each guest was given a costume at the door, which was a simple length of lightweight orange fabric with a slit for the head and a strip of matching fabric for a belt.

Props

Each guest was given a cardboard tube "scepter". (Tubes were saved from Christmas paper gift wrapping.)

2 guests were secretly given longer "scepters" than the others.

We noticed an immediate party atmosphere when guests were given costumes and props. We enjoyed the smile on everyone's face as they anticipated a fun evening.


Guests Announced

Guests were announced like royalty when they entered the "party room".


Food & Atmosphere

Simple cheese, sausage, crackers, grapes and punch were laid out on a long table.

"Tijuana Brass" LPs on a vintage record player were playing lively background music.

Lights were kept down low.

Games

1. As first guests were enjoying the snacks, they were divided into 2 groups and sent to separate rooms and given 3.5 minutes to come up with a list of uses for their "scepters".

2. It was explained that 2 guests had longer "scepters" and they could command Johnnie to do what they wished.

Then the 2 guests were sent out of the room and it was decided by the rest of the guests what action these two performed that would cause them to relinquish their longer "scepters". For example, if Gary laughed, he would have to give his "scepter" to the person who caught him laughing. Or, if Sarah ate a grape, she'd have to pass on her long "scepter".

This activity kept the attention on Johnnie, the birthday boy, while he fulfilled commands such as only walking backwards, only stepping on the black tiles, etc.

It also kept the "scepters" moving around the group.

3. When everyone had arrived, we counted off, dividing the group into four groups. Each group was given a twenty year period of Johnnies' life and given ten minutes to come up with a skit portraying those 20 years.

Here is a video of ages 1-20...with Johnnie himself acting as Johnnie.




The next three sections of twenty years were equally as funny as this one.


4. Each guest was given a sheet of typing paper and a cardboard mat board to place it in and asked to write a poem about Johnnie. The guests really got into this poem writing activity and took a long amount of time completing their complex poetry. We did not place a time limit on this as all the guests were thoroughly enjoying this activity.

Each guest then read aloud his or her poem....and they were very hilarious poems!

5. After the above activities no more games were needed as the group spontaneously broke into song after song and Johnnie, feeling much loved from all the attention, took center stage and soloed his way through the next period of the party.

6. The evening officially ended with a guest shooting off fireworks outside in the snow as he was leaving. We all enjoyed watching them from a glass front door.


Conclusion

Simple costumes and props for everyone with a few interactive games that focused on Johnnie, along with lively background music set the stage for a very fun and hilarious evening.

And most importantly, Johnnie, the birthday boy, felt very much loved!