Big party Weddings in the age of social distancing
We need to reduce crowd density, which is only a minor part of any successful event.
In early August I was in a zoom meeting for the events industry where we had a chance to listen to and ask questions of the Deputy Chief Public Health Officer. And while we are in a fluid time with restrictions, there were a few timeless pieces of wisdom about interpreting the guidelines which came out of the meeting.
The strongest messages that came out of the meeting was; to reduce the density of your guests, and the guidelines are exactly that - guidelines! They are blanket rules put in place and are designed to be flexible. For example, the ‘no dancing’ rule is designed to stop large groups of strangers being in close proximity - it does not apply to your first dance. I’d also be inclined to say having the bride/groom, bridal party, and immediate family up on the floor for the purposes of your wedding video would also be completely fine.
What we do want to do is reduce density and the rest of this blog is going to give you some ideas on how to do that without affecting your party. I’ll even go as far to say there are ways these restrictions will make your party better.
Sarah & Toms marquee wedding on their parents farm was a great layout for a socially distanced day, with a big space inside for guests, and a breakout area with firepits, barrels, hay bails, and more.
Firstly you want to choose the right venue. You want a space which is warm and flexible, with lots of areas to spread out in. This is easy for me this season, all of my clients have booked incredible spaces with amazing wedding co-ords who will no doubt already be taking you through these options.
Secondly would be your layout of the space. I’m usually located front and centre on the edge of the dancefloor for a banging party, and my preference is to be near a bar. But this season I want to approach the spaces differently; the way a venue is laid out sends subtle cues to people about how they should behave and we want to send the message to be comfortable to spread out. Out is the wide open expanse of a dancefloor, in comes areas with tall tables, bar stools, rugs, grass, and campfires. Instead of moving and changing lighting, the lighting would be more static and moody. It’s all about creating a place where people can be comfortable, as if the space was never intended to have a dance floor in the first place.
Mood setting your space has become super important. Think about small bars; they are warm, intimate, lots of little nooks, calm lighting, places to laugh, meet, and converse. This is what you want to create for your event. By changing the design and layout of your space with lighting and furniture, you can have an amazing event without the dancefloor
One idea I’m really excited about is utilising the ‘pre dinner drinks’ area in two different modes. In a wedding where you have your ceremony on site; usually you’ll have the ceremony, then move to a casual pre-dinner drinks area, then to dinner, then dancing (this is the format of the majority of the weddings I do). But this season that informal area has so much value. You can set up a single area with tables and chairs, an informal space to relax in - this space already says relax and spread out, so going back to that space after dinner is going to carry that idea on. It’s going to feel natural. I’ve done this at so many weddings now and it always works a treat.
Everything prior to this has been about mitigating the impact of the covid guidelines - now I’m going to go out on a limb and share some ways they could actually improve your day.
Outdoor weddings have always been a huge vibe, Adelaide’s 2020 wedding season is going to bring even more of them
The pressure to party is off, it’s the season of relaxed weddings!
Firstly, the guidelines take the ‘party’ pressure off. At a lot of events I play there is a pressure to make people dance, but sometimes it just isn’t going to happen. For example, early in 2020 I played a corporate event in a large function room, guests were on the second of a four day conference, they had been out the night before, they were going out the two nights following, and they had just sat through a full day of presentations about business things. The room was grossly oversized for the crowd with minimal furnishings, the drinks package was basic, and there was a speech half way through the night about some pretty serious topics. Top it off - massive dancefloor right in the middle, and they were not the dancing crowd. Now I’m used to being thrown in the deep end and making things work, venues and event managers come to me because I have a reputation for making shit stick - but there was absolutely no level of performance which could make a dancefloor happen.
It was awkward af - but it didn’t need to be! What made it awkward was the ‘party’ expectation but the large room and dance floor, the room screamed ‘party’ but the time and guests didn’t. The ultimate goal of that event should have been a nice night out, they should have planned for comfort and intimacy.
Around the same time I played a gig for Mitsubishi, a male skewed crowd, corporate, weeknight at the midpoint of a conference. It was similar to the previous event in many aspects, except they chose to have it at Pirate Life Brewery which was the perfect size for the number of guests, it appealed to their crowd, they lit the space carefully, and I paired myself with an acoustic musician for the night to play mood setting music. There was a barber shop in house for haircuts, and a huge selection of craft beers to try. It was appropriate and comfortable. Everyone was relaxed and happy.
The current covid restrictions are forcing events to walk the path which Mitsubishi did, to take away that party expectation, which leaves you with a lot of space to create something truly beautiful. In the current climate, proper event managers are more important than ever!
No Dancefloor means more musical Freedom
Now you have this unusual freedom, you can widen your music selection. At almost every client meeting I have people say to me ‘here is my music collection, this is what I love, but nobody will dance to that stuff’. But now - FREEDOM! By not having to keep people on a dancefloor, you can spread those genre wings far and wide to create something really special. And I am so so excited to do that.
Here’s Ryley, a bit hairier, midway through setting up for a dance party at the Adelaide Festival Theatre. I spent a few years running daytime dance parties, and I still run daytime dance events for Longview vineyard, and Mollydooker. I can’t wait to bring my events experience to my wedding clients.
Just a quick note for my clients on what I’m doing right now;
At weddings I’m MC’ing, I’ll need to help manage guest expectations. I’m keeping on top of guidelines and communicating with venues so this is silky smooth.
I’m calling venues and talking with them about changes that are require, and ones I’d like to make. Providing a bit more freedom to my clients to create something magic. Go Team!
Performance wise, I’m changing my playlists away from party driven music and towards a wider selection of music. This is done within the context of what my each of my clients expect from me and I’ll be speaking to everyone about that at your pre-wedding meetings.
I’m investing in wireless speakers and placing them around the room to create a more ambient sound rather than the standard way of setting them up next to my dj gear. Subtle change, but it creates a more relaxed vibe.
A lot of venues have in-house speaker connections near the dancefloor, entertainment providers can plug into these so their music goes through the in-house speakers. I’m investing a wireless system so I’ll be free to move my dj equipment away from the usual dance floor positions and still utilise their in house speakers.
Lighting is going to become so much more important to creating comfortable spaces, and I’m looking at ways I can add to my equipment to create better moods. Once again, I’ll be speaking to venues and my clients individually about this.
With people being more comfortable being outdoors at the moment, I’ve purchased a new marquee to cover my equipment. So in the event of a quick shower, my performance isn’t affected and my clients have one less thing to worry about.