Reception walk-through

The first thing that normally happens at a wedding reception is the announcement of the wedding party and bride & groom. I call this the grand entrance.  I will make sure and meet everyone outside the venue and line them up to announce. Normally the bride & groom choose a song to walk in to. Usually it’s something up beat and energetic. For suggestions, refer to grand entrance list on my website. 

Next will come the toast. I will make sure that the champagne is on the table before the wedding party arrives. The toast normally is made by the best man and maid/matron of honor.

After the toast if you choose to do so, there is a prayer that is made before dinner. The prayer is usually made by the pastor that married the bride & groom or it’s done by somebody in the family or close friend.

After prayer, i will announce that dinner is served. The wedding party table is released first, followed by the close family of bride & groom. Then i normally choose a certain side of the room to follow.

After dinner, would be the cutting of the cake. I will announce that the new bride & groom will cut the cake and any family and friends that would like to take pictures feel free to do so. Keep in mind cake cutting can also take place right after the grand entrance of the wedding party before toasts. This is totally up to the bride & groom. The advantage of this is that the cake is cut and is ready to be served after dinner. It usually saves about 10 or 15 minutes during the night to do it this way.

After cake cutting, is the throwing of the bouquet & garter. I will announce for all the single men and women to come out to the dance floor. Most of the time the bride & groom choose a song to be played in the background. If not i always play something fun to lighten up the mood. Keep in mind the bouquet and garter can also be thrown sometime after i officially kick off the night. Normally sometime after 9pm, after a little bit of dancing.

After bouquet & garter will come the special dances. Normally in this order…

• Bride & groom (first dance)
• Wedding party dance (optional)
• Father/daughter dance
• Mother/son dance

After special dances will come the dollar dance, if you choose to do so. After the dollar dance, the dance floor is open and everyone can enjoy dancing/music for the rest of the evening.