40th birthday celebration ideas

Hello Toytowners!!

I must start by saying that this is a gr..eat forum and i wish i had come across it earlier... !!

As the name suggests..( could not be more creative at this point ) I am new in Berlin. I have moved here recently with my husband, who is a German but not a Berliner! We do not have many friends here.. Yet! But hoping this phase too will pass with time, being the optimist that i am!

Ok back to the topic: Its my husband's 40th birthday in less than a month's time and i have decided to make it somehow interesting for him: and going away somewhere just the two of us is Reeeeeeeeaaaaaaaallly boring!! So i have invited about 12-16 of his friends from his hometown and they have all agreed to come for 'this surprise party' yipppeeeeeeee! The prob is i have not a clue with regards to arranging this surprise party in Berlin!!!

I would like to request all you wonderful Toytowners/Berliners/otherwise to be kind enough to give me some ideas how to make my beloved's 40th birthday truly memorable!!!
Some points to make the flow of ideas easier:

Budget: Comfortable
Location: Berlin / was also considering a surprise party at home since we have ( fortunately) quite a large living room
Age group: 30+
Likes: Fun and Frolic.. games.. music.. dancing.. not one of them sitting around in a circle with wine glasses in hand...

Thanks again in advance and looking forward to your ideas!

I attended a 40th in Claerchens Ballhaus. We had a table reserved for 20 but about 30 turned up. It was mainly drinking and dancing, wiht live music.

The food is basic, Pizza, but not bad. It was a great different night.

Yep, I've been to parties there as well. Good fun and will accommodate a wider age range without a problem.

Also good as a venue for dancing after dinner with colleagues (Xmas etc).

Worth popping along and checking out anyway.

Not sure about the exact timing of the Birthday Celebration but the Karneval der Kulturen is in Berlin in early May http://www.karneval-berlin.de/, maybe you could all dress up and join in the festivities? By the looks of it, could certainly satisfy the fun/frolic/music and dance parts of your wish list!

Thank you all so much for your prompt response. I will pop by at the Ballhaus to check it out!
AndyLou, I'm looking at 16th May ( its a Friday) 11 pm onwards.. guess the carnival only during the day?? although the idea of dressing up for the festivities and especially making the birthday boy dress up in some ridiculous 60's outfit seem quite appealing..

Another idea just popped in my head... The ' After-party' / Saturday afternoon can be perhaps arranged on a boat am Spree?? Googled a few sites but they all seem to be ridiculously expensive.. I'm looking at about 10-15 euro /head for about 18 people max! Any recommendations?

Ok so I have decided to host this surprise party at home!! That way i would have more control over the music, entertainment etc. The theme would be 60's retro.. have already made the invites accordingly and now need your help in organizing/ accumulating the following stuff:

16. beaded curtain
17. black lights and lava lamps
18. bean bags
19. disco balls
20. streamers
23. peace sign necklaces
24. large glsses
25. gold and silver confetti

.. basically to make the living room look like Austin Power's Love Shack I know these items are readily available online but i would like to hire stuff like bean bags/strobe lights etc..

can anyone inform me of any rental places in Berlin that provide party stuff ..??

Thanks a lot