Guests not Dancing? A few fun tips to put in place for your Wedding Reception

Let's be honest, not every wedding that you or I attend will be a thriving dance party. In fact, not all of us can “cut the rug” so to speak on the dance floor like Kevin Bacon in “Footloose”. So, lately a frequently asked question that Top Notch addresses during wedding consultations is “What other activities can we do if people aren't dancing”. It's a very important, yet common question that Top Notch will address. The good part is that there are so many activities that a couple could offer for their wedding, that it's going to take 2 blog posts for me to write. So the first in this 2 part series blog is below. 

A bride and groom know their guests and therefore will often know before the event if the party will contain a “dancing crowd”. If, the event is not necessarily full of dancers, it's certainly ok. The most important part of any wedding or event is for 1. The bride and groom are happy and that every one has a good time. Now, on to a few games you can incorporate into your potential wedding reception plans.

1. Money Dance- Also called the Dollar Dance or Apron Dance involves the male guests paying to dance briefly with the new bride. On most instances, the males will either pay the new groom or the mother of the bride for the dance. Often times, Top Notch will use fake money for this activity unless the bride and groom are counting on “cashing out” by the bride and groom dancing with family members.
2. Anniversary Dance- Also called the “Age Dance” serves the purposes of recognizing the couple in attendance at your wedding that has been married the longest. A couples dance song is often played and all married coupes are invited to gather on the dance floor. Couples are dismissed depending on the length of time they are married until one couple which has been married the longest remains on the floor.
3. I SPY: This is a GREAT Game for guests to play at a wedding reception and it allows the bride and groom to gather pictures from their reception that the photographer may have missed.
   How it works: Guests are giving a list of I SPY images as well as a digital camera (or an Instagram hashtag for smart phone users in this day and age). Examples of I SPY images may include “Best Man embarrassing the Groom”, “The Best Dancer in Action”, “Bride & Groom Kissing”, etc. Guests should attempt to shoot photos of each image required on the list before the conclusion of the reception.
4. Question/Message Booklets- The question booklet asks particular questions to the guests and is placed on all dinner tables. Examples of questions guests are expected to answer may include “What should we do for our honey moon?” Guests can leave their thoughts, and comments for all questions and the bride and groom are guaranteed to find the answers amusing upon reading. In contrast, the Message Booklet is a very similar concept as the Question Booklet with the difference being that guests are allowed to leave messages for the new bride and groom such as “Please leave a message for us to open on our 5^th wedding anniversary”
5. Mad Libs- Wedding Mad Libs can be purchased at various wedding stores and online, however, this activity is great for guests seated at the dinner table as it allows them to converse, bond and get to know each other. Additionally, the bride and groom will certainly get a kick out of the responses that the guests have written after the wedding For examples of Mad Libs for your wedding check out Etsy.com such as these mad libs
   
   

Stay tuned as the second blog will provide more additional tips one can have in place to keep wedding guests entertained throughout the wedding reception.  Thanks for reading!!