Disco tots

DESCRIBED BY ABC news as "a certified cultural craze amongst this new generation of

parents," the all new 'Baby Loves Disco' in association with Babyshop is set to hit Dubai on Saturday October 11. Baby Loves Disco is the new way for parents, and kids to socialise get funky and stay fit in a welcoming and warm environment.

Picture this, the lights are low, the tunes are playing and the disco ball is flicking over flashes of brilliance on the dance floor. But it's not 2am on a Thursday night at one of Dubai's packed clubs its 2 pm on a Saturday afternoon, at Plan B, Wafi and the dancers are toddlers and their parents!

USA Co-founders Heather Murphy and Andy Blackman Hurwitz created this family dance party phenomenon about three years ago. Today, this entirely parent-run network of local moms and dads hosts sell out events in 26 states of America, across the UK, Japan, Norway, Sweden and Hong Kong to name a few! In London events are sold out until November and tickets are so sought after they are being traded on EBay!

The fun spills out from all corners of the club; well known Dubai radio presenter and DJ Chris Fisher will spin dance happy hits of the 70's, 80's & 90's to get those little tots moving and grooving. Babyshop the event sponsor have teamed up with 'Host Mum' Emma Scorpo to create the ultimate club experience for parents and their sprogs. The club will be decked out with disco lights, bubbles, a magician, a face painter, toys and a chill out room filled with beanbags and delicious food to keep everyone dancing in peak condition.

Babyshop will provide every child with a goody bag and the opportunity to win fantastic prizes every hour with a dance competition. There will even be a 'Barbie play corner' - the first of its kind in the world plus a chance to meet Barbie live!

City Times caught up with BLD co-founder and New York resident Andy Hurwitz.

Why do you think Baby Loves Disco has become such a global craze around the world?

The not-so-secret secret is that parents have a great time. As young parents we all spend most of free time trying to entertain our kids - and we're usually successful, but how many of those times are we as parents entertained? And it's not just because we have real music spun by real DJs in really cool clubs, parents love to interact with their kids and be a part of the experience - not just a spectator. And that's what sold me at my very first baby loves disco - my wife and I had the best time dancing together, but nothing beat the thrill of dancing with our kids on a big dance floor and sharing the experience together. And dancing, even going out to see DJs at clubs, is universal so it's not surprising that folks everywhere are getting into it. But really, there's also the community aspect, it's a great way for kids to meet kids and parents to meet parents - just like at a real nightclub, and I think ultimately the community built and shared by baby loves disco is what has led to this so called craze!

How do you feel about launching in Dubai, have you heard much about the UAE?

Very excited. To be able to have our event in an Arab country is just a dream for us because of the community aspect, of the social aspect and really in making it a smaller world. If all the parents of the baby loves discos around the world got together as humans (not politicians) we could probably save the world! There's also the glamour of the UAE, which is very highly publicised here in the States, and having our event (which we feel is slightly glamourous) in the most glamorous country is very exciting!

Are you looking forward to coming to visit the country and attend the event?

Personally, I would love to visit, but we just had a baby boy (Julius, our third!) and it's going to keep me busy here at home for a few months (I am a famously work from home dad) but one day soon I would love to bring my whole family on a tour of the baby loves disco middle east - hopefully by then we'll be in Egypt and Jordan too!

What is next for Baby Loves Disco?

Well, we have CDs, DVDs and merchandise in the mix and other than organically and naturally expanding into regions where we are welcome we want to try and bridge the global community together through our website and try and figure out how to harness all this energy and use it to make the world a better place for our children.

Event Details

Location: Plan B, Wafi, Dubai

Date: Saturday, October 11

Doors open: 2.00pm

Tickets: Dh95 per person (crawlers get in free). Tickets for October 11 event are sold out, but tickets are on sale at Babyshop and www.timeouttickets.comfor the November 8 event.

For further information contact: 04-3902060

david@khaleejtimes.com