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Baby Loves Disco gets into its groove in Tokyo

12 Comments
By Erika Aragon

When the Village People call out “Young man,” at a Baby Loves Disco event, it’s hard to tell whether they’re calling out to a 3-year-old toddler or his 30-year-old father. Baby Loves Disco is a modern event that allows parents and children to dance the afternoon away together.

On one recent Sunday, over 250 parents and children gathered to get their groove on at Fifty Seven in Roppongi. The music kept everyone moving as parents joined their kids on the dance floor to do the Hustle, the YMCA and every other dance that played.

Among the people dancing and shaking were Marina and Nana Kinno, the host mommy and host aunty for Baby Loves Disco-Japan. Baby Loves Disco was started in Philadelphia by Heather Murphy Monteith in 2004 and in four years it has become an international dance party hosted in over 30 cities worldwide. The Kinno sisters were inspired by the idea and wanted to help bring the funky groove of Baby Loves Disco to Japan.

“Baby Loves Disco reflects a new era of interactive parenting. These parents have traveled and done it all, so they’re looking for something new to do with their kids,” said Nana. “We at Baby Loves Disco Japan are focused in offering a family activity based on accessibility, flexibility, unique and refined interactive experience for the whole family and their friends, that best accommodates the hustle-bustle lifestyle of individuals living in a big city like Tokyo.”

Even though dancing is the main attraction, there is enough going on to keep everyone happy. Balloon animals, a teepee play area, temporary tattoos and a bubble machine are also available for the kids to enjoy and new activities are organized each month.

One parent was happy to have a space big enough for her kids to play indoors. “Houses in Tokyo are too small to invite anyone to your house, so this is nice,” said Ellen Loomis, mother of three. “Since the weather is bad today, this is great! It’s like a birthday party on steroids.”

Sunday’s event was the second Baby Loves Disco event. “Of the 250-plus guests, there were some repeaters but the majority were brand-new faces," said Nana. “We were particularly happy to see many dads hanging out, laughing with their chums; but always on the lookout for their kids and that 'Kodak moment.'”

Baby Loves Disco Japan will be held with a new theme every month in Tokyo. Everyone in Tokyo is invited to attend but in order to get in, you need a kid. Admission is 6,000 yen for adults and 4,000 yen per child.

For more information about next month’s event visit www.babylovesdisco.co.jp.

© Japan Today

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12 Comments
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The Village People? Are they still touring?!

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The title should be "Baby Got Ripped Off" for a family of four it would cost 16,000 JPY.

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For three hours of entertainment.

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Seattle Baby Loves Disco costs:

US$12 for all walking humans. (non-walkers free!)

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I've just got the right to the name "Baby Loves Moshing, Stage Diving and Crowd Surfing" - any potential franchisors interested? Insurance companies? :)

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furuigakko

If you think this is expensive you obviously aren't the target audience. These parents can more than afford it and are happy to pay. Are you new to Japan/Tokyo? Do you even live here? If you do then you should know better than to simply compare Tokyo prices to stateside prices using the exchange rate.

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The point I was making was the ROI, or ROE, return on entertainment.

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"Even though dancing is the main attraction, there is enough going on to keep everyone happy. Balloon animals, a teepee play area, temporary tattoos and a bubble machine are also available for the kids to enjoy and new activities are organized each month. "

I wonder how all the ideas translated across for the Japan event; in particular how popular were the tattoos at the Japanese event.

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5000 yen + 3000 yen is pretty steep.

Even if it includes a nomihodai deal, juice is cheap to buy.

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I agree with furuigakko. I live within a 5 min walk of "57" and I was invited to this event by a few promoters as well as heard about it via word of mouth. Many I know who were invited decided not to go simply because they felt it was not a good investment of time and money - it was not and issue of being able to afford it. The general consensus was that there are better alternatives to spending JY13k (for one child and two parents) for a big room with music, ballons and lights (even when it's raining). I will say that for the more common Japanese parents where the father practically never sees his kids on weekdays due to work, this may be a viable option (assuming the Fathers went!). However that still doesn't take away the fact that kids under 3 yrs should be free (even Tokyo Disneyland is free for kids under 4)!

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I agree too; this is outrageously overpriced for a three hour family event (yes, even for Tokyo USNinJapan2, and I've been here 9 years). At the "on the door" rate, it would be 20 000 yen for two kids and their parents. For three hours! It's disappointing because this is something I would like to do with my kid and husband, but not at these prices.

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Some people say disco sucks. I say...

Well, you can tell by the way I use my walk I'm a woman's man: No time to talk...

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