Dinner Party

by Jen McNeely
Since I’m not a cook, I’m not going to tell you what to make for your NYE dinner party but what I will suggest is how to set the scene 2008 styles with music, games and décor.

There are three types of New Years Eve’s that one may experience:
In a crowded bar singing Auld Lang Syne as some drunk brute tries to snog you while dripping cheap champagne down your back. One of your girlfriends will likely be crying in the washroom while another leans against the front glass vomiting. An ex will appear out of nowhere and you will feel your heart strings pulled. At the end of the night you will walk out into a blizzard and messily try to hail a cab in your heels. You will dance like crazy, push at the bar like crazy and spend your Christmas money all in one shot. The next day you will meet for brunch and hash out the deets of the night over sloppy eggs benedict and cold coffee.
You will sit at home alone because 2008 was shit. Watch Law & Order while flicking back to Times Square. Cursing the recession you will down a bottle of wine on your own and pass out on a couch. Or if you aren’t a boozey Suzy, then you’ll make a hot bath, drink some tea and fall asleep before midnight.
You will gather a group of your best friends for a lovely dinner party, play games – get a little tipsy and feel excited for all the good things you are going to do in 2009.

The Music:
MGMT – Time To Pretend
The Ting Tings – That’s Not My Name
Will.I.Am – Yes We Can
Black Kids – I’m Not Going to Teach You How To Dance
Lil Wayne – Lollipop
Flo Rida – Low
Kardinal Offishall – Dangerous
Lights and Music – Cut Copy
Estelle – American Boy
MIA – Paper Planes
Duffy – Mercy
Crystal Castles – Crimewave
Katy Perry – I Kissed A Girl
Kanye West – Flashing Lights

The Games

Who Am I?
Each dinner guest will get a piece of paper posted to their back and must go around the room asking yes or no questions to figure out who they are

Suggested People / Objects to Be:
Sarah Palin
Heath Ledger
iPhone
Conrad Black
Barack Obama
Tina Fey
Paris Hilton
Fafi
Miley Cyrus
Joel and Ethan Coen
Steve Jobs
Karl Lagerfeld
Estelle
Converse Shoe (100th Anniversary)
Marilyn Monroe (50th Anniversary of Death)
Princess Diana (10th Anniversary of Death)
Rob Blagojevich
Michael Ignatieff
Tyra Banks (just cause she’s fun…not really 2008)
Polar Bear
Stride Chewing Gum
Sam Ronson
Gladiator Shoe
Bernie Madoff
Porter Airlines

Top Ten Most Memorable Moments
Have everyone write down their most memorable 2008 moments and then unveil them all at once. Sounds boring but good conversation will spawn.

The Placemats:

Resolutions
When you are nice and sauced, go around the table and ask everyone for their New Years Resolutions. That said, be mindful that people may want their privacy.

Drunken Debates
Yes We Can!!...but can we?
Recession or Depression
Hollogram News – like? Or freaky?
Hipsters – dead? Or alive? Or shut the fuck up!
Reality show…if you had to: Paris Hiltons BFF or Tila Tequila?
Made in Canada? Made in China?
Bailing out the Big Three…good idea?
Polaroid Camera versus Facebook Albums
Facebook versus Twitter
Which campaign did we like, hate: Koodo Mobile? Damn Right Your Dad Drank It?
What is the drink of 2009?

Good luck in 2009!

You know that ice hotel in Norway? (or was it Sweden? Minnesota?) Here's how you re-create the experience, minus the plane ticket, the frostbite, and the crazy looks from family members saying "You're spending your honeymoon where?"

The Decor
- strategically placed faux-fur throws
- bearskin rug
- roaring fire
- DRY ICE CENTREPIECES! (you were just waiting for an excuse)
- Mounted Reindeer head
- Spray-on snow (tastefully applied. tastefully.)
- An as-yet-undecorated Christmas Tree
- Ice Scuplture
- Strap reindeer antlers on your dog.

The Garb
Think Ice Queen
- Fur hats
- Mukluks
- Sexy blue, silver, or white cocktail dresses and fur wraps

The Music
- Tchaikovsky: Winter Daydreams & The Nutcracker Suite

The Food
- Dill Potato Soup
- Bison Burgers
- Venison
- Norwegian Meatballs
- Honey Mousse

The Drink
- Strasberi Caiproska (Stoli Strasberi, Lime wedges, chopped strawberries, white sugar)
- Brigg Beer
- Swedish Glogg

by Haley Cullingham
Celebrate the sexy, radical spirit of the French New Wave with red wine and cigarettes, messy hair and bedroom eyes, trench coats and dancing.

The Decor
- plaster statues of Greek gods
- graffiti-inspired art
- candles in beer bottles
- as many New Wave movie posters as you can find.
- stacks of records
- a phonograph to play music on. Roll back your rugs for dancing.

The Garb:
Do Jean Seberg: gamine crop-cut, black and white striped 3/4 sleeved t-shirt, black flats
Do Anna Karina: blunt bangs, kohl-lined eyes, sexy schoolgirl sweaters and pleated skirts
Do Bridget Bardot: Big blonde hair, cat-eyes, thick headbands, and cardigans
Guys: Fedoras and trench coats

The Music
Movie scores by Georges Delerue, sexy french music

The Food
Starving Artist Food:
- Fresh crusty bread
- fancy cheeses
- fresh fruit
- sorbet

The Drink
- red wine

Screenings
- Breathless (Jean Luc Godard)
- 400 Blows (Francois Truffaut)
- Cleo de 5 a 7 (Agnes Varda)
- Bande A Part (Jean Luc Godard)

Ah, thanksgiving. Syphillis, massacres, instant mashed potatoes. BRINGING PEOPLE TOGETHER! Whip out the garnish and give thanks like they did in the olden times.

The Decor:
-roaring fire
-self-hewn wooden benches
-leaf-rubbings (DIY!)
-barrels of salted meat for the coming winter
-paper cut-outs of turkeys
-patchwork quilts and animal skins. Obviously, you'll turn off the heat for authenticity.

The Garb:
Do it Pioneer Style. Little House on the Prairie will tell you all you need to know. Some basics:
-bonnets
-bloomers
-aprons
-floral-print floor length dresses
-square-toed black man-shoes

The Music:
Have a musician friend play banjo in the corner. Pay him in free Turkey and beeswax candles. Demand he wear overalls and chew a stalk of grass.

The Food:
-Turkey
-Mashed potatoes
-MAIS!
-Gravy
-Squash
-"Shit-I-Burned-Dinner-Where's-The-Chinese-Menu?"

The Drink:
-Mulled wine
-mead
-A good old local(ish) brew like Northern Ale
-cider

Makeup:
Are you kidding? Fresh faced and rosy cheeked.

Fabulous, flashy, chic, and...tacky? Go over-the-top with a haute-couture-gone-wrong celebration where more is more and too much is too fab. That's vogue, sweetie.  

The Decor:  
80's print ads
stacks of vintage Vogue magazines
Spray-painted gold vases with deep red and purple flowers
Black pillar candles
Leopard-print cocktail napkins 

The Ensemble: 
Fishnets
Leg warmers
Sprayed-out-to-here peroxide-blonde hair
Anything latex
Tube dresses
Cone bras
Your prom dress, hacked off just below the crotch, with a pair of cowboy boots 

The Music: 
Vogue-Madonna
Le Freak-Chic
I'm Too Sexy-Right Said Fred
Walk Like An Egyptian-The Bangles
Supermodel (You Better Work)-Rupaul
Relax (Don't Do It)-Frankie Goes To Hollywood
Superfreak Part 1-Rick James
Puttin' On The Ritz-Harry Richman
These Boots Are Made for Walking-Nancy Sinatra
Girls Just Wanna Have Fun-Cyndi Lauper
Whip It!-Devo
Kiss-Prince 

The Food:
Caviar, Darling
Antipasto Platter
White Asparagus
Grilled Scallops
Sushi
Duck
Fig Salad
White Chocolate Mousse 

The Drinks:
Lemon Drop Martinis
Bailey's Shivers
Champagne 

Makeup: 
Benefit Hollywood Glo
Candy-Red Lips
Over-kohled eyes
Anything sparkly
Pancake foundation
Penciled-in beauty mark

When that crisp fall air leaves your cheeks like fresh apples, and you start having to layer up in big wooly sweaters and slosh through cold ponds with rubber boots – it’s time to start mowing down on split pea soup, tortiere and squash.

The Décor
You best have a Hudson Bay blanket tossed somewhere
Maple leaf etchings or bark stencils would make cute place settings
Have a toy deer placed on the table with pine cones by his ankles
Red and white checkered tablecloth
Drizzle some quarters – moose up decorating the circumference of plates
Snowshoes hung on the wall
Pictures of the Dion

Who am I??? – The Canadian Personality Game!

Tape a piece of paper to the backs of your guests and get them to walk around the room and ask people questions until they guess who they are. Winner gets a blue jay cap – last person to guess gets maple syrup on their face and a beaver tail slap.

Suggested Personalities
Anne of Green Gables
Margaret Trudeau
Samuel de Champlain
Jean Chretien
Mary Pickford
Scott Speedman
Rita McNeil
Alan Thicke
Brian Orser
Daria Webowy
Peaches
Pamela Anderson
Hal Johnson from Body Break

The Music
Joni Mitchell – Big Yellow Taxi
Feist – One Evening
Arcade Fire – Wake Up
Neil Young – A Heart of Gold
Sarah Slean – Parasol
Sam Roberts – Canadian Dream
Tegan and Sara – Walking with a Ghost
April Wine – Bad Side of the Moon
Leonard Cohen – So Long Marianne
Cowboy Junkies – Sweet Jane
Stompin Tom Connors – Bud the Spud (play this when you are tanked and want to do a potato jig in the middle of living room)
(Absolutely no Anne Murray)

The Food!
Tortiere
Pig Foot
Tarte a Sucre
Pea Soup
Moose Droppings
Poutine
Vegetable Medley depending on harvest
Apple Dumplings
PRIME RIB

The Drink!
Choose from a plethora of local wineries
Beer – Mill Street, Creemore
Apple Cider

The Apparel
Must wear plaid
Rubber boots
Jeans – classic no skinny
Grey cashmere sweaters
Wooly socks
Crisp, white undies

Makeup
No makeup – only Vaseline on lips permitted

A gritty celebration of art for art’s sake, New York City, eccentric characters, sex, booze, and fallen starlet Edie Sedgwick.

The Décor:
Store as much of your furniture in garage as possible
Opt for mattresses for seating over chairs
Push couch to middle of room
Display large meaningless art
Drop cloths
Record player
Replace white bulbs with coloured bulbs
You’re a keener if…you can get your hands on a Warhol film (CHELSEA GIRLS is a personal favourite) to project onto wall during party

Party Activities:
Provide a large canvas and paints for guest to play
Source out Polaroid cameras and film for guests to snap pics of each other
Shoot a Warhol style film – cell phone cameras will do (ideas: couples kissing, guests eating, coat room)

The Attire:
Leotards
Tights with holes
Furs
High heels and platforms (don’t even consider making this a shoes-off kind of party)
Leopard print
Fake lashes
Biggest, longest earrings you can find
Skimpy skirts and dresses
Hats of all kinds
Black and white stripes
Turtlenecks

The Music:
Velvet Underground
Nico
Modern Lovers
Bob Dylan (“Leopard-Skin Pill-Box Hat” is a must!!!)
Jimi Hendrix
The Doors
”I Shot Andy Warhol” soundtrack
The Rolling Stones
The Kinks

Culinary Delights:
Bean dip
Brazil nuts
Pastry wrapped sausages
Campbells soup
Cheese fondue
Peppered steak
Jelly beans
Fruit flan
Sherry trifle

Drink:
Milkshakes with or without alcohol
Canned beer (Carlsberg and Heineken were hugely popular in the 60’s)
Sherry
Rose wine

It’s an Italian Gothic Opera Dinner Party

A decadent celebration of Gothic Architecture, Gothic Dress (i.e. either of the time OR a la Camden Town, London), Italian Food and Opera (Italian or otherwise). An over the top haunting romantic evening, with a sac-religious opulent feel.

The décor:
Extravagant candelabra
Scripted place settings with a blot of blood stained ink
Stained Glass
Rosaries for all the guests (apologies if this deeply offends Catholics)
Images of the Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore mixed and scattered with images of black cats, Salem witches and Christina Ricci (from the Adams family era)
Black lace – EVERYWHERE!
Black Crows

The Attire:
Cleavage
Red Lips – try MAC Russian Red (yeah, I know this is an Italian dinner party but St. Petersburg is full of gothic architecture)
Black lingerie
Insanely smokey eyes
Gloves, with no fingers
Acqua di Parma Perfume

The Music:
Mozart (yes Austrian, but our most famous opera man)
Puccini
Franz Schubert (Another Austrian..but come on – Ava Maria?)
Pavarotti singing anything
Groin Vault Dance Moves

Culinary Delights:
Caprese Salad
Buschetta
Veal Parmesan
Gnocchi, anyway you like it
Taliatelle alla Bolognese
Prosciutto and Melon
Tiramisu – for dessert

Drink:
RED WINE MUCH BETTER SUITED FOR THIS EVENT!

Antinori Peppoli Chianti Classico 2002
Tuscany, Italy
Cedar and Floral character, spicy finish – vibrant and young!
$12.85

A-Mano Primitivo 1999
Puglia, Italy
Notes of raspberry, red licorice, bumbleberry pie and spice
15.95

Albino Armani Foja Tonda 2001
Veneto, Italy
Foja Tonda is a near extinct Italian grape!!!! Taste the tannin.
$18.10

*If you aren’t a wine drinker – have sparkling water or Campari and Soda

Games:
Every time you ask to pass the olive oil, or whatever – you have to sing in Opera
Q&A on gothic architecture
Staring contest backed by Figaro music
DIY stained glass window après dessert craft time
Vampire biting