For the most part, attending a wedding is going through the same routine you’ve gone through at just about every other wedding you’ve been to. First there’s a ceremony, possibly with a few happy tears. Then you travel to the reception venue while your stomach rumbles from hunger. You find your table, get a drink and make polite chit chat with your table mates, getting hungrier and hungrier. When the staff finally serves the appetizers, you may get a few (if you’re lucky) to hold you over until dinner. Then it’s the endless wait for the wedding party to arrive. By the time the bride and groom arrive, you are usually starving, bored and maybe even ready to leave.
Thankfully, wedding planners and couples today realize that they need to change things up in order for their wedding to stand out and their guests to have an enjoyable evening. Wedding entertainment has changed drastically from previous years. Gone are the days that wedding entertainment consisted only of a wedding band or DJ playing music for an hour or two after dinner. While music and dancing are still an integral part of weddings, now they are just one piece of the wedding production. Couples are striving to plan a wedding event to remember. Here are some of the recent trends in wedding entertainment.
Themes
Theme weddings are more popular than ever. Couples are incorporating their hobbies, common interests and nationalities into the themes of their weddings. If you and your fiancé enjoy medieval fairs, you can ask your guests to dress accordingly. If you’re really daring, you can hire knights to have a duel during the cocktail hour, or you and your fiancé can arrive at your reception on horseback. Many couples want to incorporate their nationalities and heritage into their weddings. For example, if you are a couple with a Scottish background you may want to hire a Scottish wedding band and ask them to play a traditional Ceilidh set. Or you can even hire Scottish Highland dancers to perform for the guests while they are waiting for you to arrive at the reception. Themes can be understated and elegant, or bold and extreme. It all depends on how far you want to take it.
Lighting
Lighting is an important part of the wedding production. A few tea lights on each table or a spinning disco ball were the extent of the lighting in weddings of the past. Today’s couples are hiring lighting designers to create dramatic environments within their reception venue utilizing uplighting techniques. The right lighting can make a room feel romantic and intimate or give it a club vibe for a party atmosphere. The options are endless.
Entertainment and Food
One of the biggest complaints of wedding guests is the downtime spent waiting for the bride and groom to arrive to the reception venue. Many couples realize this and do their best to keep their guests entertained and happy while they wait.
Food, of course, is a wonderful way to keep guests in a good mood. Rather than traditional appetizers served by wait staff, some couples are opting for themed food stations. This gets guests up from their tables and mingling with each other. For an added surprise, some couples even hire specialty chefs to prepare food right in front of their guests, such as a sushi chef rolling fresh California rolls, or a pizza chef throwing dough and making fresh mini pizzas. Other trends include stations for guests to make their own food, such a taco bar, a build your own sundae bar, or a candy buffet.
Another trend is for couples to provide entertainment for their guests during the cocktail hour, such as magicians, fire eaters or dancers. You can celebrate your heritage by hiring a group specific to your nationality. To get guests in on the fun, couples can offer karaoke, or even hire a professional dance instructor to give dance lessons. This helps keep your guests engaged, entertained and ready for the party to come.
The bottom line is that every couple wants their wedding to be unique and to stand out from the rest, while providing an enjoyable event for their guests. When planning your wedding, be creative and use your backgrounds, interests and shared passions as a couple. You are sure to have a wedding to remember!