If the wedding ceremony is why guests arrive, then quality entertainment is why they stay, so it’s important to get the very best.
In cultures across the world, wedding celebrations can last days, even weeks, at a time. With the proliferation of different peoples in the UK, we’re coming around to having weddings that step outside of tradition. But for all intents and purposes, the weddings we know and love tend to be all day affairs.
Stripped down to their basic components, there really isn’t all that much to a wedding. The church ceremony may feel long with guests on tenterhooks and the bride and groom a ball of happy/nervous energy, but it’s over pretty quickly. Guests will then usually make their way to the after party for the speeches, but unless everyone rambles on with soliloquies of Shakespearean proportions, the expected events only make up a small portion of the day. It falls on entertainment to fill up the remainder of the schedule.
Since ancient China, fireworks have been associated with celebration and prosperity, and as explosive technicolor display can still fill onlookers with glee. The difference between what can be bought commercially and what can be put on by a professional company is plain as the night sky they illuminate. You want to make some lasting memories, and having a beautifully choreographed and dazzling firework display is a great place to start.
Live music is guaranteed to impress guests, and a better means of getting relatives up on the dance floor than a DJ from the school disco circuit.
Though you might have a family member in a band, it might not be advisable to humour them for your wedding. Sure, it might be cheaper (or even free), but having a group that can’t hold a tune or forgets the lyrics is going to put a damper on proceedings. No one says you have to go for a rock covers group, with the live music scene in Lincolnshire alive and well. There are also orchestras and classical options to consider. In a bid to keep cost down, some couples are even turning to music streaming platforms and curating a playlist for the event, though that invites all manner of technical glitches.
Others might want to break with tradition and opt instead for something a little different, such as performance artists or entertainers. You don’t have to be limited to inside entertainment either, with fire breathers and other such performers available to wow guests. It’s best to bear in mind that people do enjoy a dance, and having music of some kind will always go down a storm. Depending on the venue you’ve booked, there’s always the option to utilise different rooms. If the central hub of the after party is a live band and dance floor, then orbiting rooms could be for chilling out with a stand-up comic, or something for any little ones in attendance.
Cake cutting and speeches aside, the crowning glory of the after party is the bride and groom’s first dance. It’s a pivotal moment in their coming together as one, and depending on their abilities, will no doubt provide some entertainment for guests. The benefit of having a live band or professional DJ is for moments like these, as dancing to a live rendition of a song that means the world to you will no doubt be the icing on the cake.