Wedding Program

First decide on an MC you can use someone in your family or someone that is comfortable speaking. they will introduce the wedding party, the bride and groom, the parents and whoever else is entering and also will explain the games. what i would do is make a rough time line of your day and add in the things you want to do in the evening and play around with what you want to do first

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Perfect thank you! we are in the process of visiting venues, so if they have a day-of coordinator that will definitely entice us more to pick those venues.

If you hire a DJ, they often do the MCing themselves, but make sure you ask about it when you meet with them. As for your timeline, you'll have to coordinate with your venue and photographer(s). Your venue will have a standard timeline that you can tweak as you need. Like the others have said, your first dance usually kicks off the dancing but it depends how long you'll have your photographer for. If you don't have long enough, then moving it to right after your entrance before dinner is usually the next option.

Also, does your venue have a day-of coordinator? A planner isn't necessary but I've heard a day-of coordinator can ease your stress by 500%.

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Thanks gorgeous!!!

time to ask all my friends who wants to MC haha! And yes the shoe game was a game i had in mind

View quoted message All just suggestions!! But I do hope it can at least help you get the ball rolling!

- Who Introduces us? Usually the DJ or the MC (the DJ usually offers to be the MC)

- Do we need an MC? Not if you have a DJ willing to take the role, otherwise you could also do what me and my Husband did and asked one BM and one GM to tag team the role. We asked a couple others that weren't in the wedding party first but all of our outgoing friends were in the wedding party already.

- If not who will host? DJ/Wedding Party

- Should we play a game? Up to you - I really wanted to do the shoe game, but at the end of the night we didn't get around to it because boy does the day go by fast! And then on top of it you don't want to take the dance floor away from those who want to bust a move!

- When do we do our first dance? It differs for every couple. Some options are: as soon as you enter the reception go straight into it, after supper/speeches, before cake cutting. If you are wondering about the Mother/Son and Father/Daughter dance and the first dance then what we did was after supper/speeches we did our first dance followed immediately by the Father/Daughter and Mother/Son dance (we used the same song for both me and my Husbands parent dance).

Feel free to DM me with any silly questions man! That or just post them up here and we will answer as soon as we can If you can't ask an unlimited amount of questions on this site - where are you supposed to ask them??

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Thanks !!!

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All my friends are shy hahahha ! I could have one or two do little mc'ing here and there. thank you!

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Wow do detailed! thanks so much for all this. I will definitely take notes and speak with the FH on how we should do this!

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Thank you !

I’m going to assume you are having a plated meal. So here’s a basic timeline of one way you can space out / plan your reception.


Decor - is cocktail hour space separate from dinner space. Who decorated and when do you have access?
Cocktail hour - typically 1 to 1.5 hours directly after the ceremony. If the ceremony is on-site usually 1hr if the ceremony off site 1.5 to allow for guest travel time.
Are you having a receiving line?This is were you'd have it typically. Bride + Groom + parents + grandparents + bridal party
Cocktail hour extras - music DJ or live music? Signature cocktail? does venue offer champagne?Are you and bridal party off taking photos? Did you already take photos, and joining the cocktail party?
MC / DJ typically will announce when guests are to begin taking their seats.
Formal entrances - bride + groom and bridal party are announced into space usually accompanied by music.
First dance? Trend is to get it out of the way here rather than after dinner. Who plays music? DJ / Playlist / Live?
Sit down for dinner - most plated services are 2 hours. So from 7pm to 9 pm for example.
Speeches - can have MC announce each speech, DJ can do it, OR each speaker can intro themselves or next person. Hash out audio visual details with your venue.
Space out speeches based on course2 during starter ( MOH + BM)2 during entree ( parents of both sides)Bride and Groom usually speaker during or after dessert.
Other dancesFather / daughter danceMother / son danceAnd games like garter toss and shoe game etc could be sprinkled in.
Then dance party! You can open dance floor with first dance if you didn’t do it before handDoes venue need to clear tables to create a dance floor or is dance floor space ready to go?If DJ let them do their thing.
Playlist route - make sure crossfade is one to prevent gaps in playlist. Don’t let everyone “become your DJ” music will get pretty chaotic fast. Have some curated playlists before hand of 3-4 hours of music.
Extras - how long is bar package? When is venue shutdown? When do you need to start packing up decor? Who can help out? Do you have a decor rental company or does the venue provide assistance?
Do you have late night food, internal or external food vendor?
Biggest takeaways1) have someone who know the plan fully act as a contact person for vendors / venue / and keeping you on track! MC or MOH or a parent.
2)timelines shift - just roll with it and have fun!

We are also asking a friend to MC they have MC'd a few weddings and luckily know what they are doing. We are only having our first dance no father/daughter or any of the other ones. Once first dance is done we're ready to party, toght after dinner. I'm thinking of doing cake cutting fairly early so it doesn't get forgotten. My ceremony is at same venue so once it's over it is a case of walking down a hall to reception room for cocktail hour. We are forgoing the grand entrance. Really it is all about what you and your SO want to do. It's just good to make out your timeline so a few people know it so things aren't forgotten or time doesn't get away from you and you find you dont have time any more.

Are you doing photos in between? If you are an emcee or a friend can run some games while people have a drink or two before the reception starts. That's a good time for people to sign the guestbook too.


I think the first dance is usually after dinner and before cake.
Ive seen some cute timeline posters/signs for weddings so guests know when things are happening. More rustic weddings are using pallets for this, I've seen some cool ones on mirrors or in fancy frames just so people know that it's cocktail time followed by food etc.

Having an MC definitely helps since they keep the flow going. They introduce you, then they are the one to let people know what's happening throughout the evening, like when cake cutting is starting, father-daughter dance, bouquet toss, etc. We're having 2 of our best friends do this since they're people lovers and love getting them involved. But you can also hire people for such things.
Games can be fun, but I find people lose interest really quick depending on the game.First dance typically starts the dancing portion of the night, so normally just after dinner since bride and groom are the first to receive their meal so will be first to finish and can have their dance while others are finishing up their meal and can join in once they're finished eating. But you can also move right from the grand entrance to your first dance, have dinner, then have the father-daughter/mother-son dance and have that be the queue for everyone else to join. There's really no set standard for timeline, just whatever works for you and your day.