Hi Susan!
That sounds like fun! I'm assuming you can't do anything religious. Check out Pinterest as there are tons of ideas there for literacy nights. Find a topic you love - for me, it would be nature-based or play-based. Use the moment to teach the parents ;) Two quick ideas - Not a Box, have a collection of boxes - shoebox, kleenex, or smaller, and have colored masking tape to decorate the boxes for a no-mess project. Or Not a Stick and have sticks about 12" long and allow kids to make wands by wrapping them with yarn, tying ribbons on the ends, and maybe adding a few bells. Fairy tales are fun too and you could find and print off free masks for the kids to color and wear or put on a popsicle stick. Or if you really don't want to read in front of the crowd, find a song book. We have What a Wonderful World that's beautiful and you could do an Earth Day project since that's coming up on the 22nd.