I have two main ways of doing a balloon show.

The first is just about like every other balloon contorter out there. I show up with my bag of balloon and my pump and proceed to spend my time twisting the balloons into the requested shape or form. Each balloon done on request by me for the person who is doing the requesting.

This type of show presentation is good for a fair or festival or event where the people are milling and stirring about. Where they're not tied down to a specific area or seat and the crowd is fluid. Often, when I'm doing this form of Balloon Show, I will be moving slowly throughout the area of the show so as to cover the whole ground and reach more people.

The downside of this type of show is that often you wind up with a long snaking line of people waiting for their turn with the balloon guy so that they can get the balloon they want made.

The long snaking waiting line is okay and can be lived with if you are hosting an outdoor or large- scale indoor event. If, however, you are hosting a smaller event or party -- then the long and winding line is right out.

In this case, I have a fall back that works well for groups of up to about forty or so main guests. I say main guests because some of these events are geared toward the younger members of society and as such they normally have at least one parent in tow. Thus, you might tell me you're expecting eighty people, but forty of them will be under the age of majority and those are who you need to keep entertained.

It is for just this reason that I came up with my second style of doing a Balloon Show.

In this case, I come in with approximately three balloons blown up for each active participant there. I'll rope the inactive ones into the play in a moment.

Thus, having all these balloons inflated to the proper length and tied off, I give one balloon to each active participant. Now, picking up one from my back stockpile, I proceed to walk them through the twisting of the basic balloon animal. This is where the inactive participants get involved as they get to help the active ones.

Having finished twisting your basic dog-type balloon, we do it all over again twice more. The people remain the same only the animal we twist will be changed to keep it interesting.

Then, hey, what do you know, I've been there for the bigger end of an hour and all the active participants have three balloon creations of their very own to take home with them. They're happy. You're happy because I've kept them busy and quite when you need them just that way and look what they get to take home with them.