Inside the opulent world of six-figure kids birthday parties in Silicon Valley

The stages vary for a professional children’s entertainer in the Bay Area. Sometimes it’s a park in San Francisco. Occasionally, it’s a Silicon Valley mansion and its sprawling backyard or tennis court. And once in a rare while, you’ll be escorted onto a private plane and whisked away to put on a show at a mountain ranch.  

“This is one of the best places in the country to do this kind of work,” said Silly Circus Show founder Bri Crabtree, who has juggled and goofed around with kids at all kinds of venues, including the aforementioned secluded retreat.

For clowns, magicians, balloon twisters, circus performers and party planners, the Bay Area’s great weather, phenomenal wealth and talent pool smaller than those of New York or L.A. make it a dreamy place to earn a living in children’s entertainment. 

Here, parents shell out five figures or more to create an unforgettable experience that may include a coterie of performers, live animals, elaborate catering, custom swag bags and intricate sets designed to transport children to another world. 

“It can be like Burning Man, but for kids,” said Wendi Gross, who goes by the stage name Wendi Wynazz for her business, PowerUp Parties. 

She and Crabtree describe delighting little ones at lavish homes decked out according to themes such as a favorite book or movie, rainbow sloth (why not?) or a classic circus, complete with a giant elephant statue and popcorn machine.

“Some of these parents are very low-key on the phone, and you can’t tell how extravagant it’s going to be,” said Crabtree, “And then you get there and you’re like, ‘Ooooh. This is a scene. This is very unlike my childhood birthday party.’ ” 

Myri Dujovne, who offers expansive balloon installations alongside full-service party planning at her business Fun and Confetti, said parents are gravitating toward interactive foods — snacktivities, if you will — like build-your-own waffles, soft-serve ice cream from carts laden with topping options, and customizable pizzas, finished off in ovens hauled to the site. 

Everything gets personalized, she added: “It’s not just someone serving cotton candy; it’s someone serving cotton candy from a cart that has your kid’s name and party logo on the front of it.” 

She has organized graduation parties, birthdays and bar mitzvahs (which she describes as “mini-weddings” in their extravagance) on which parents can spend “$40,000 to $60,000 easily.” 

In some cases, a kid’s birthday is really a respite for mom and dad: Those with 1- or 2-year-olds just want a champagne toast to “surviving early parenthood,” she said. 

While her balloon sculptures and custom backdrops are popular, Dujovne doesn’t get many requests for over-the-top decor. For the most part, she finds that Bay Area parents like their soirees to feel special without being ostentatious — a stark contrast to the gaudy opulence on display in L.A. or East Coast enclaves. 

“I get people who say, ‘Look, my budget is between $20 and $30K, but I don’t want people to know how much I spent,’ ” she explains. “They’ll prioritize quiet luxury, like a really good chef or the experiences for the kids.” The tacos will be elevated, the bounce houses will be “aesthetic,” and the Owala water-bottle party favors will be customized with each kid’s name. 

Some Silicon Valley parents do buck that convention, of course. 

Magician Dan Chan and his son James have performed tricks at truly over-the-top kids celebrations: that one decadent party that served lobster (which they didn’t get to try, they recall with longing) and the one where kids could select ice cream flavors to be folded into custom Choco Tacos. An event with Hollywood-quality sets where guests were given costumes to take home stands out, as does one with an ice-sculpture bar for the parents that chilled $300 bottles of wine. 

“I’ve seen cakes where I could tell that they spent more for their kid than I spent on my wedding cake,” Chan said. “It looked like something from ‘Cake Wars.’ ”

Though the Chans can one-up each other with stories, their most excessive (or exclusive) parties remain a secret: The two, as well as other performers and planners who spoke to The Standard, say there have been times they’ve had to sign multi-page nondisclosure agreements. 

While many parties take place at private residences in the likes of Atherton and Palo Alto, Chan has performed for kids parties at Claremont Club & Spa and the Rosewood Sand Hill, as well as at takeovers of Happy Hollow Park & Zoo and San Mateo’s CuriOdyssey science museum.

He has seen budgets of tens of thousands of dollars and estimates that the biggest bash he has performed at — for the 6-year-old child of a tech company founder — clocked in around a quarter of a million. 

James Chan, a kid himself at 15, has become accustomed to the eye-popping sums.

“All these parents — from the ones that just spend a little bit to the ones that spend, like, crazy amounts — they all have their kids’ best interests in mind,” he said. “They just want to give them a special experience, and I can’t pooh-pooh them for doing that.” 

The kids rarely act spoiled or rude, the Chans say. Of course, they have witnessed tantrums, but they’ve also watched grade-schoolers stand up to give gracious speeches thanking their guests. “The level of composure, it’s like, ‘You’re gonna be a CEO someday, just like mom or dad,’ ” said Dan Chan.  

Sometimes the parents are quite involved in how the celebration plays out.

“These people are used to really high-level jobs where you do things meticulously, and that translates over to how they plan their party,” Gross said. 

On the other end of the spectrum are parents who are too busy to do any planning and prefer to outsource it all to a professional. 

That’s how Robert Fountain, who has spent decades organizing galas, immersive events and weddings, found himself in the kids party circuit — when his long-time clients started having children, they wanted to stick with him. 

The pivot hasn’t been difficult for Fountain, who observes that there are more than a few parallels between Silicon Valley adults and children.  

“Their attention span is not great, they can become bored very easily, and they’re not the most social people in the world,” Fountain said. “So I just took that, and applied it for kids.”

From obstacle courses and amphibian petting zoos to re-creations of Harry Potter’s Diagon Alley and Sorting Hat experience, engaging experiences are Fountain’s goal. For his clients, the cost isn’t an obstacle, which gives him the freedom to be creative and hire top talent. He has hosted Lego parties, “Frozen” parties and an event with a Robin Hood theme.

“I’m sure somebody could look at these parties and say, ‘That’s just ridiculous. How could someone do that for a kid’s fifth birthday?’” he said. “But this is a huge business — these parties are an economic force. They’re supplying a living to great entertainers who get to show off the craft that they’ve honed.” 

The performers, naturally, agree. 

“People might think it’s wasteful, but it’s providing artists with a job,” Chan said. While the typical journey for a professional magician requires a move to Las Vegas, his family can live off local shows. “If it weren’t for these parties, we would be starving artists.” 

For Gross and Crabtree, bringing laughter and joy to kids is its own kind of magic, whether it’s happening in a public library or at a regal estate in Woodside. 

“I’ve always thought that there should be a reality television show about what I do,” Gross said. “It’s bananas.”