Holding a wedding does not necessarily require inviting a professional toastmaster who can organize fun, captivate guests, regardless of their age, and observe all existing traditions and customs.
What is the difference between a wedding without a toastmaster, how to hold the celebration yourself, who will perform the duties of the host? Let one of the relatives or close friends of the bride and groom take on the role of toastmaster. The holiday will be bright and memorable if you choose the appropriate scenario and the most fun and unusual competitions, in which guests of all ages can take part.
Preparation
When drawing up a holiday script, you need to take into account , first of all, the wishes of the newlyweds .
In addition, you need to take into account:
- number of guests;
- their age;
- social status;
- mentality.
Important! Collect as much information and interesting facts about the guests and the newlyweds as possible, and hand over the “dossier” to the person responsible for entertainment at the wedding.
This will help you create the perfect program. You can do without long speeches: they will only tire the guests present. But you shouldn’t refuse congratulations , the main thing is to give them the right time, for example, before serving hot food. Competitions at this moment will be just inappropriate.
In what cases can you not invite a toastmaster?
Wedding agency specialists advise celebrating the birthday of a new family without a toastmaster only with a small number of guests, namely not exceeding 30 people. When organizing more crowded weddings, it is better to invite a host.
There are several reasons why young couples decide to hold a small wedding without involving a toastmaster:
- A modest wedding is arranged for the closest relatives and friends who already know each other. Such an event has a special family atmosphere and will be fun without the involvement of a professional host.
- In addition to close relatives, a cheerful and close-knit group of friends who are able to organize the fun on their own is invited to the celebration.
- Finances do not allow hiring a good presenter. A professional toastmaster, working according to a modern scenario, and able to find contact with all the guests invited to the wedding, costs a lot of money. Without the financial ability to hire a highly qualified specialist, it is better not to risk hiring an inexpensive toastmaster, so as not to ruin an important day in your life.
A professional host will not be needed if the newlyweds and their witnesses have written a wedding script, with a set of preferred rituals and competitions.
A scenario thought out to the smallest detail can be brought to life by witnesses, friends or relatives of the young couple.
Presenter selection
In place of the toastmaster, it is better to look for a witness or one of your friends, distinguished by organizational skills, the ability to speak clearly and with enthusiasm.
Interview those you consider suitable for the role of presenter, and choose the one who will respond most enthusiastically to the proposal . Still, most guests plan to relax at the wedding, rather than entertain everyone around them, and the host should be the one who traditionally becomes the life of the party at every event.
Scenario
Every wedding has common moments, such as a marriage registration or a banquet in a restaurant, but there is no standard scenario. Some people like the idea of bride price competitions, while others consider it an outdated tradition. Some couples go on a photo shoot to memorable places on their wedding day, while others organize a photo walk on a separate day.
When drawing up the script for your wedding, clearly state at what moments and who will have to act as toastmaster. After the plan for the day is detailed, the newlyweds and the future host must agree on everything point by point .
Note! You should not share the details of the scenario with anyone other than the newlyweds. If any of the guests know in advance what competition tasks are planned, their behavior may turn out to be feigned.
General organization issues
The main tasks of the toastmaster are organizing guests and their leisure time. It is important not only to hold competitions according to a pre-written script, but also to properly organize the invitees and prevent “confusion and vacillation.” A professional host knows when it's time to raise another glass and when to send everyone to the dance floor. At the same time, he must be an improviser and be able to respond to any challenges, navigate emergency situations and prevent conflicts.
Expert advice! Before entrusting the functions of a leader to one of your friends, you should analyze their abilities and personal qualities. Not everyone can cope with this difficult task. It is also important that the potential presenter is eager and enthusiastic to help you.
When the right candidate has been identified, you need to think through the following organizational issues:
- meeting of invitees before the arrival of the newlyweds;
- meeting of newlyweds and their parents;
- inviting guests to the table;
- order of the feast: toasts, competitions, dancing;
- organization of musical accompaniment: live music, DJ, selection of tracks;
- algorithm of actions in the event of force majeure circumstances.
These are the key moments that are usually present at any wedding, no matter what style it is held in. Together with the person in charge, draw up a detailed script for the celebration, down to the minutes allocated for certain speeches and toasts. Please note that competitions for weddings without a toastmaster should be simple in execution, but at the same time interesting.
Interesting! Choose fun competitions for parents and guests to organize yourself.
If the celebration includes a performance by invited artists, the script should regulate the time of their appearance and performance. Everyone who participates in organizing a banquet must clearly know their functions.
Take care of props for competitions and symbolic gifts for guests. Count their number as accurately as possible - there is no point in overpaying for unnecessary attributes.
Top 10 cool entertainment
To prevent one of the most important days in your life from turning into a complete feast, it is important to have original and interesting entertainment. It is better to choose wedding competitions that do not require a lot of props and that do not force guests to do something difficult .
We offer ten ideas for interesting competitions that are easy to organize on your own.
Simple warm-up
Based on the KVN competition of the same name. The host reads out questions prepared in advance, and the guests must answer them funny. The main thing is that vulgar or offensive topics should not be touched upon.
Talking cap
The only props you need are a cap (hat), as well as phrases read in different voices and recorded on a voice recorder. At the right moment, the host brings a cap to the head of one of the guests and says: “Now I will read your thoughts!” At this moment, a pre-prepared phrase sounds from the speakers.
When holding the “Talking Hat” competition, you can also use pre-selected fragments from songs . Lots of laughter guaranteed.
Musical chair
Chairs are placed - one less than the number of participants. To the music, which gets faster and faster, the guests walk in a circle. When the sound stops, you need to take an empty seat as quickly as possible. Those who do not have time are eliminated from the game.
With each stage, there are fewer and fewer chairs until there is only one chair and two participants left. The one who manages to take the coveted place will be declared the winner.
Attention! At the end of each competition that you have in mind, try to give the guests small souvenirs, even comic diplomas. This will motivate others to participate and will leave those present with a pleasant impression of the celebration. These are small things for you, but you will be surprised that, years later, your friends will remember your wedding because they received pleasant surprises at it.
Song-anti-song
Competition for two teams. One sings a verse (for example, “We will be together, always. Oh, yeah! Just say: “Yes.””), and the other team responds with song lines that contradict in meaning (for example, “I love you... but it’s not destiny - with you alone not on our way").
I'll sing now
In another cool wedding competition, the first team sings a song that contains some question (for example: “Where are you, my beloved, where?”). The second should answer the question with another song (for example, “Where the currants grow...”).
Honeymoon
All guests are invited to imagine that they are flying on a plane with the newlyweds on their honeymoon. Everyone chooses a pair and a role: flight attendant, pilot, etc. Then the journey begins with landing in different countries, where characteristic music sounds and everyone dances in different styles.
Love hedgehog
For this simple competition you will need any fruit and a couple of dozen matches that are inserted into it. The task of the young people is to take turns getting one match at a time and at the same time address each other affectionately. For example, “my sunshine”, “my princess”, “my dear”, etc.
Make me smile
The groom stands frowning, pretending to be angry with his wife. Her task is to make her loved one laugh with the help of gestures and words.
Tickling is prohibited! But all kinds of support from guests is encouraged and accepted to make this funny competition even more fun.
Bowling alley
For such a game you will need props - a ball and pins on which the future household duties of the bride are written. For example, washing dishes, ironing, daily foot massage.
The bride throws the ball and publicly promises to do what is written on the knocked down pins.
Funny songs
The host asks the bride and groom to write three lines from different songs on a piece of paper. Then he announces to the guests: “Now we are counting information from the subconscious of the newlyweds and finding out their innermost secrets!”
The presenter says: “This is what the groom thought when he first met the bride (reads his first line). And here’s what the bride thought (reads the first line from her sheet). This is what the groom thought when he kissed the bride for the first time (reads the second line from his sheet). And this is what the bride was thinking about (reads her second line). But what does the groom actually think about during the wedding (reads the last line on his sheet). And this is what the bride thinks (reads out her last line).”
If all this is said with perky notes, a good mood is guaranteed!
How to celebrate
Ideas for a small wedding are related to the seasons: summer, autumn, winter and spring. A spring wedding has its advantages: low prices for wedding dresses, many free dates in registry offices, discounts on rental premises. In the summer, there are many more ideas for organizing a small celebration: you can choose, for example, an outdoor ceremony and it will be more pleasant to go on a honeymoon at this time.
A good option for a spring or summer intimate wedding is a boat trip and a “sea” celebration with the appropriate paraphernalia. A small wedding in the fall is somewhat limiting, just like a winter celebration. But you can always find an interesting way out. Ideas for a small wedding in the summer are more varied and budget-friendly.
The first thing you should think about when preparing for a wedding is invitations. Of course, when there are few guests, you can call them all and invite them simply by phone, but it will be much more pleasant if each friend and relative receives an individual invitation to the ceremony. Cards should be decorated in accordance with the style of the wedding, and you can also give a small gift along with them.
Interesting ideas
If you are ready to allocate additional funds for equipment, you can hold several more competitions, which will leave unforgettable memories.
Hidden camera
Buy a Polaroid camera and give the guests a task: take turns taking one photo of the newlyweds during the celebration . At the end of the evening, the newlyweds choose the three best photographs themselves and reward the authors.
Invite those who wish to record photo and video reports of the event on their smartphone. By the end of the evening, all participants send the results of their work to the groom, and the best directors receive gifts. And the young people receive a lot of memorable recordings, from which they can later edit an excellent film.
A more creative version of the competition for aspiring directors is to leave the room and shoot a film on a smartphone about the love story of newlyweds without their direct participation. To demonstrate masterpieces, the presenter will need a projector.
Another projector-based contest is to show clips of wedding films and have guests guess them.
Feel like Schumacher!
Who doesn't love remote control cars? Give out one machine with a long needle attached to it, pointing forward. Scatter balloons on the floor. Give everyone the opportunity to pop the balls one by one by remotely controlling the machine. The one who bursts the most wins!
Recommendations for young people
It is important to remember that organizing a small celebration is a serious task: you need to find a venue, prepare a program and ideas for a photo shoot. To create a memorable, romantic wedding, it is important to take a few expert tips:
- The end of the holiday should be original and memorable: fireworks, the launch of balloons or Chinese lanterns.
- Take care of background and dance music by making a playlist of your favorite songs, or invite a professional DJ.
- Be sure to have a joint photo session with your guests.
Prohibited!
Before drawing up a holiday script and selecting wedding competitions, you must definitely find out the prohibited topics for those present .
For example, if you decide to hold a drinking competition, you should not attract those who have problems with alcohol. Of course, you should not touch on sensitive topics such as politics or religion, or joke about national characteristics. The presenter must be extremely correct in his statements.
in advance who is not very well disposed towards whom , so as not to seat them next to each other, not to unite them in one team - in general, to avoid possible conflicts.
Attention! If guests refuse to participate in certain competitions, you should not put pressure on them and spoil the mood.
When thinking through the list of competitions, try to avoid vulgar tasks if you doubt that your guests will like them. And always keep a couple of options in reserve , because rarely does a scenario come true one hundred percent.
