IN A NUTSHELL: A music party at which the kids are transformed into stars.

MEET THE FAMILY: Pamela and Bob Hamilton of Carmel, California, threw this bash for their daughter, Honey (named after Abba's hit seventies tune Honey Honey), who was turning eleven. Bob and Pamela both work in the music business. Every birthday in their household is celebrated by waking up to the Beatles' hit Birthday

THE RIGHT AGES: 10 to 13 years (kids who aren't up for the pin-the-tail routine anymore).

THE INVITATIONS: Laminated backstage passes. Each guest was asked to come dressed as their favorite rock star, and to bring a cassette or CD of their favorite song.

DECOR & PROPS: A stage area and dressing rooms, with all the right equipment and signage. Have on hand a video camera and at least an hour of tape.

The Hamiltons really played up the look of the party. Their stage area consisted of rented microphones, a spotlight, plus a blue velvet backdrop. Silver stars dangled from the ceiling, and a banner that said, "Rock and Roll Will Never Die" hung on the backdrop. They borrowed a keyboard, ottomans (for drums), drumsticks, and tambourines and bought an assortment of inflatable, inexpensive guitars and saxophones in bulk from the Oriental Trading Company (800-228-2269). They laid out a half dozen CDs of the latest hit songs for guests who might have forgotten their own. (None did.) And they hung lots of signs, including, at the end of the driveway, one that read, "No Limos Past This Point," and on the front door, "Hamilton Hall."

THE PARTICULARS: Fourteen guests, toting their backstage passes, were admitted to Hamilton Hall. Siblings and parents had to check in with the bouncer (Bob). Siblings were given Crew badges to clip on their shirts; parents wore Press passes from TEEN BEAT, ROLLING STONE, or SPIN. Each star was issued a pair of sunglasses and assigned a number pulled out of a hat. All the ones went to makeup, the twos to hair design, and the threes to the rehearsal hall to practice. "Luckily I have a couple of friends who are talented in the area of makeup and hair," writes Pamela. The guests came out with their hair done up or down, in curls, with sparkles, with red or purple or green streaks. Each group chose a song from the tapes they had brought and worked out their routines. After half an hour in each station, the guests switched places, until everyone was ready to start. (Parents were invited back for the actual performances, and most showed up.)

Then the performance began. Bob, acting as MC, introduced each act. ("And now, straight from Garden Stadium, singing their number one hit single...!") Next, they blasted the music ("We wanted them to be immersed in the sound," says Pamela), turned on the spotlight, and started the videotape. The guests strutted, lip-synched, danced, played their instruments, and copped the style of their favorite singers. At first they performed in groups of five or six, then some did solos. During the last song, all the kids danced together. Then they lined up and yelled, "Happy Birthday, Honey!"

THE AFTERGLOW: "We couldn't tell which was more fun, the actual performances or watching the video of the acts while eating birthday cake," says Pamela.

SEEN & HEARD: Nobody was shy. They came dressed wildly, got made up wildly, and sang and danced wildly. Some of the parents who watched the show were "very traumatized," reports Pamela.

FOOD & DRINK: The regular stuff. (You could make a CD cake and jazz up with dancing rock and rollers.)

THE FAVORS: Sunglasses and an inflatable sax or guitar.

THANK-YOU'S: A copy of the video.

Battle of the Bands Party Checklist

More Kids' Birthday Parties »

Birthday Gift Finder »

More Gift Ideas from Our Favorite Things »