Reception Entertainment!! Ideas/Suggestions!

I agree with LMac.

If you are "absorbing too much and now on overload", take a step back. Otherwise your wedding will end up looking like a high school graduation party. Fortune tellers, tattoo artist, magician--these are all things my high school provided for us as 18 year olds when we graduated. I really fear that your wedding will scream "I'm trying too hard!!!" if you focus on this "entertainment" concept. Provide your guests with good food, free drinks, and fun music. They will have fun.

"I welcome ideas, because like I said, I'm on overload and dog training and watching paint dry seems entertaining and different now!"

I'm so confused by this whole sentence. Music, good food, and drinks should be plenty, dinner and dancing later. Photo booths are popular because people actually enjoy them, but they aren't necessary. Sorry, with so much to plan and budget for for a wedding I don't get adding on extras like it's a kid's party.

I really don't get the whole entertainer thing at weddings. I get that cartoonists and photo booths are popular right now, but I think adults can entertain themselves just fine with music, food, and booze.

OP, all of those ideas you have sound like a carnival more than a wedding. If you have religious family, they might be downright offended. Gaming tables with a saloon theme could be cute, but to do it right you would need to hire a dealer and I think it's just downright unnecessary and inappropriate for a wedding. When I see gaming tables I think fundraiser casino night.

We're having dancing, lawn games such as corn hole, bocce ball etc, plus our venue has a few fire pits that we will have going. I don't think you need all of the extra stuff you mentioned, photobooths are fun but I agree they're overdone.

I would suggest fun food things, like a good ice cream bar, or something. May not be super entertaining, but is something everyone can enjoy. If our venue allows it, we plan on doing a popcorn bar (it will be the favor kind of too), where people can make a bag for themselves with popcorn and add different toppings (probably trail mix kind of toppings) to then enjoy there or take home. I thought about a magician to walk around and do card tricks during the cocktail hour for about a second, and then realized people would rather talk and catch up then have someone come up to them like that. At least my guests would enjoy more food type stuff than other entertainment. I would like another fun idea for something else for guests to do besides dance, but I think we are going to stick with photo booth, popcorn bar, drinks, and dancing. And talking. Talking is good.

I don't think you need entertainment. Other than a cartoonist or photo booth people can be adults and mingle, dance, hang out without having something to do. I feel like you are leaning towards a birthday party than a wedding. A wedding is entertaining itself, there is no need to add other things. And just because you have these things will not make your guests stay. Its just an unnecessary cost and time consuming for you. I'd pass on this.

I don't get it either. Eat, drink, dance, make conversation, as adults usually do.

Photo booths; they seem overdone to people planning weddings but I see them every week and they almost always go over well.

Although I could be talked into a dunk tank.

We had a firepit with a s'mores bar, which was hugely fun for people. Everyone likes chatting around a fire on a cool autumn evening. If we had the money I also would have considered a characteristic. I second the others though, you don't need to overdo it with "activities".

It's a wedding, not a carnival. Save yourself the money and the stress.

Sometimes its nice to have something extra like a photo booth or unique appetizer bar if you are having a longer cocktail hour while you are taking some photos. Once the reception starts you don't need anything. Are you having a lot of small children there? One of the venues I looked at had a tv room where kids could hang out and watch a movie.

I hope you are joking about Magician, fortune teller, hypnotist, henna tattooist...??

We are considering caricature artists for favors. Something a little different than a photobooth but in the same idea.

I think my problem is that I've been 'reading' too many sites that urge this on... and not having been to a wedding in about 20 years; thought that was an expectation nowadays.

Thanks for the advice, will stick to tried and true.

It's a wedding not a circus.

Hello OP, I wouldn't worry too too much. I think you could try to set up some small socializing area that fits your theme might be nice depending on how big of a wedding you're doing.

The only extra thing I'm doing is setting out a couple of decks of cards. This is pretty big in my family, and we're only having a small wedding of 40 people. I'm playing background music because no one in my family is dancers including myself and the groom. I figure at my wedding people will socialize, drink and play cards. It's more of a casual get together and I figured even if only one table played cards, at least it might keep a group of people there a little longer if they have something to do besides dancing.

I'm doing a caricature artist

One of my friends had a caricature artist at her wedding and hardly anyone had a drawing done (maybe 10 out of 125). I didn't even know there was an artist there!! Everyone was dancing

Hmmmm @treasure731 did she give any feedback about her thoughts?

@sqwiggy she wished she had made it more visible. It was in a random corner. I probably would have gotten one done if I knew it was there

I don't know where brides are hearing that they need to hire anyone besides a DJ to handle the reception entertainment. A magician? A henna artist? A fortune teller? Honestly, these sound like the types of tented attractions a carnival barker would be shouting about at the county fair. In the interest of full disclosure, I don't get lawn games like Bocce Ball, Croquet, or Cornhole either. I don't get scavenger hunts, board games, or quiz games that focus on the couple's history or preferences.

My apologies to all who are doing these things -- I mean no offense -- but when I go to a wedding, it's an easy, breezy, dress-up, social event. I love weddings because they celebrate the positive. I also have a reason to wear something much more glittery and eye catching than normal. I can wear more dramatic make-up than usual (after all, I'm still a girl at heart, lol). As I'm getting ready to go to the wedding, I'm thinking of the family members that I haven't seen in a year, but with whom I spent countless holiday meals when we were all children and teens. I'm thinking of a party with people I love, but rarely see. I'm thinking about the drinks and toasts I'm going to enjoy. I love watching the ceremony -- always have, always will -- but the pre-planned fun stations would do more to interrupt the flow of the reception than enhancing it (at least in my opinion). When an adult attends a beautiful event, they're expecting an adult event -- cocktails, apps, people, dinner, and a DJ/band.

OP, are you having a dry wedding or a cash bar? Usually, it's the bride who is worried about keeping the party going without alcohol that goes this route. Typically, they resort to birthday party-ish or carnival entertainers. Honestly, I don't even get the photo booth. In my mind, it was a thing in the mall in the 1970's that was surrounded by junior high and high school students cramming into a booth and mugging for the camera. At the end of the shoot, they walked away with four, small, B & W photos. As an adult, I don't get the attraction. I assume they'll fade away in time.

Just provide good apps and dinner, good cocktails, and good entertainment. If you've covered those three bases, you've got a guaranteed home run.