<<There aren't many parents at our school who are willing or able to commit volunteering time, >>

The above statement caught my eye immediately. How are you going to manage this whole event without help?

Just as an FYI, as we live in the similiar geographic area, here are our stats:
311 donations in total
150 local businesses donated
$40,700 - cumulative value of all donations
480 attendees
$36,000 gross revenue
All of above was achieved with core group of 25 committed (defined as dedicated, not insane) parents. Our ticket price was $20 entry fee(includes dinner, no alcohol and one sheet of tickets) baskets are different value, with $8.00, $10.00, $16.00 per sheet. Each person on average spent $75. We have found over the years that $75 to be a constant. No matter how much we up the ante, we can't seem to increase that amount per person.

I think it may be possible to do things first then discuss what was done with him. He is leaving the committee set up to me (I can form what ever committees I think are necessary to accomplish a successful gift auction), and he's fine with my list of businesses/companies I plan on requesting donations from. He just seems to be very adament on having the event a certain way and being involved in the final decision of where it is to be held at. There aren't many parents at our school who are willing or able to commit volunteering time, and since this type of fundraiser usually brings in quite a bit of money (when done right) I think he just got very excited that we are actually going to be doing one and felt his way was the best way to do it. I did talk him out of doing an ad journal because I felt that with soliciting for donations, it would be greedy to ask the same places to buy space in an ad journal. I felt an ad journal could be saved for another time/another event. And I talked him out of over pricing the tickets because I couldn't see people buying a $40 ticket (what he wanted to charge) to a gift auction, spend money on drinks, and spend money on the tickets for the baskets.... that's asking too much from people. So I do see him being flexible in other areas of the planning, just not the location and dinner aspect.

We always theme our auction. It has been Mardi Gras, Spring Fling, Luck of the Irish, Pajama party and all decorations went with the theme. Same for the program and centerpieces.
I have been to tropical themed auctions and ones that are 'high roller' themed.
Since it's in the spring, I would do something 'April Showers, May Flowers' and do it all in spring colors and flowers. Just a thought.
Like I said previously, your principal sounds like he is on a power trip. Hope he has the same attention to detail when it comes to your childrens education. Is there any way you can dissociate yourself from him? Make your arrangements etc. and let him know AFTER the decisions are made? There is an old saying,'It's better to applogize than to ask permission'.
You can also take a different tact. Go to the principal and say ' You know, since you have so many definitive ideas on how this event should run, I think it best if you were to chair it. I would be happy to support you in a different role, say publicity, but we seem to have such polar different ideas, I think you would be best suited to run the entire show'. Sort of call his bluff. Don't usually advocate these kinds of tactics but it seems like his micromanageing every detail warrents it.

I went to a formal fundraiser (mostly silent auction and raffles) that was held as an Oscar party. But the Academy Awards fall earlier in the year.

It was a lot of fun, I have to admit. They had a Joan Rivers look-alike greeting everyone on the red carpet as they arrived and two HUGE big screen projection systems for broadcasting the event.

<The food is nice, ditto the venue but it's about getting people to open up their wallets and spend money on the tickets that counts>

That was my point when I had a meeting with him - that the idea wasn't to have people come out to an elaborate dinner, rather to spend money on the tickets for the baskets so we can raise money for the school... I just couldn't get through to him.
He mentioned that we need to come up with a theme... which stumped me because I've never been to a tricky tray where the event itself was themed and I have no clue as to what theme to do. We're looking to have the event late April or early May (most likely May... we need to decide soon so we can book the hall). Has anyone been to a tricky tray where the event was themed? I know the baskets all have a theme, and at first that's what I thought he was trying to say, but he said "No, the auction needs a theme"???

I agree with dlf, your principal needs to roll up his sleeves and give positive contructive help instead of shooting down all the places you have looked at. I think you hit the nail on the head regarding 'why no one would chair the Gift Auction last year.'
I went to an auction with a dj and it worked like this: during the preview easy listening music was playing in the background. Once the event started, he took over, called all the numbers, played games with the audience, kept the energy high etc. Look to your parents. Many have events for family- communions and alike and have hired local dj's that they can give you references for.
Also...big thing to remember when signing your contract, get it in writing how soon ahead of time you can come to set up. We always get in the night before to set up tables, chairs, decorations, everything except the baskets themselves. We bring those in the day of the event and NEVER leave them unattended. We learned our lesson years ago when 2 large baskets were stolen after set up. Also, don't forget you need to allot monies for gratuities and again, get in writing who takes care of clean up.

Your principal needs to take a reality check. The food is nice, ditto the venue but it's about getting people to open up their wallets and spend money on the tickets that counts.