A: The last thing you want to do on your wedding day is run around town in a big white dress carrying trays of barbecue sauce. Your best bet is to call a local catering company and ask for referrals to companies that provide wait staff only. Another idea would be to call the restaurant providing the barbecue and ask if they have recommendations. Perhaps they have wait staff not working the day of the wedding who would love to earn some extra money. Professional catering staff is a better option than off work waiters because working a wedding is different than working a restaurant. You want people with experience if at all possible. A final option would be to ask friends and family for recommendations for responsible teens or college students. If you go this route, make sure you designate a contact person you trust to be in charge of the amateur wait staff.

Engagement Party
What it is: An engagement party is a coed party that generally happens at the beginning of the engagement. It’s a great way for the two different sides of family and friends to meet each other. If the bride or groom is from a different city than where the wedding will take place the engagement party can be held in his or her home city for people who do not wish to travel. People having destination weddings also frequently have engagement parties.

Who hosts: Usually the family of the bride or groom, but a good friend can as well.

Gifts: Yes

Entertainment Ideas: Music, low key strolling acts such as a magician anything in keeping with the theme of the party

Bridal Shower
What it is: A girls only party designed to “shower” the bride with gifts and tips on married life.

Who hosts: Generally a bridesmaid or other close female friend. Since gifts are involved family members don’t generally host bridal showers.

Gifts: Most definitely yes

Entertainment Ideas: Music, Comedians, Henna artists, Belly dancers 

 Bachelorette Party
What it is: Rowdier and raunchier than a bridal shower, a bachelorette party is a girl’s only party. Although you can choose to host one at home, many groups choose to hit the bars.

Who hosts: Generally, bridesmaids but can be other female friends.

Gifts: Optional, can be less expensive “gag gifts” or more “personal” than a bridal shower gift.

Entertainment Ideas: If going out, a party bus or limo is a must! 

Bridesmaids’ Lunch
What it is: Held the weekend of the wedding or shortly before, a lunch, brunch, or tea to thank the bridesmaids for all of their hard work. The bride’s mother and future mother-in-law may also be invited.

Who hosts: The bride or the bride and her mother

Gifts: Given by the bride to the bridesmaids

Entertainment Ideas: Quartets, soloists – background music

Bachelor Party
What it is: Traditionally, bachelor parties are held the week of the wedding and involve lots of debauchery and wildness. That’s changing as grooms are realizing that it isn’t really a “last night of freedom” but a chance to bond with their guy friends.

Who hosts: Best man and groomsmen

Gifts: Optional but usually gag gifts, or just shots or drinks at a bar

Entertainment Ideas: Think less stripper and more paintball fight for a modern bachelor party 

Rehearsal Dinner
What it is:  Party held the night before the wedding to thank and honor the people who are in the wedding and out of town family.

Who hosts: Traditionally, the groom’s family, but today it can be either family or the bride and groom themselves.

Gifts: No

Entertainment Ideas: Anything you would have for a wedding! Musicians, DJs, magicians, clowns it all depends on the theme and the mood. The rehearsal party can be a great way to work in ideas that you didn’t get to use for the wedding itself.

By the way, all the entertainment ideas are available through GigMasters!

To help you get a better idea of what  wedding entertainment for your reception might cost where you live, we’ve pulled some numbers for you. These numbers obviously don’t cover the whole country, but we tried to pull from a variety of regions. All averages based on ACTUAL 2011 GigMasters bookings. Some of the numbers may surprise you!

Live Band
Los Angeles – $1,625
San Francisco/Oakland – $1,519
Washington D.C. – $1,981
Atlanta – $2,266
Chicago – $2,011
Boston – $2,329
Las Vegas – $3,741
New York – $2,059
Cleveland – $1,241
Austin – $1,744
Seattle – $1,370

DJ
Los Angeles – $595
San Francisco/Oakland –  $556
Washington D.C. – $526
Atlanta – $479
Chicago – $697
Boston – $631
Las Vegas – $355
New York – $721
Cleveland – $521
Austin –  $530
Seattle – $766

Variety Entertainer (Caricaturist, Face Painting, Magician, Silhouette Artist, etc)
Los Angeles – $340
San Francisco/Oakland – $425
Washington D.C. – $215
Chicago – $503
Las Vegas – $450
New York – $425
Austin – $600
Seattle –  $225

Tribute Act/Impersonator
Los Angeles – $962
San Francisco/Oakland – $335
Washington D.C. – $385
Chicago $1,198
Boston $595
Las Vegas – $244
New York – $499
Cleveland – $750
Austin – $997
Seattle – $150

Keep in mind, these are all still averages. GigMasters has entertainers of all sorts at all price points!

• Decide on the ending
Most planning tools advise you to start your timeline with the start of your wedding, but we recommend thinking about the end of the event first. Do you dream of a party lasting until the wee hours of the night or are you at your best during the day? Day time weddings can be less expensive, and leave time for an After Party, but they can be hard on bridal party members who have to travel from out of town. Night time weddings can be difficult if you’re planning on leaving for your honeymoon early the next morning, and can be difficult for guests with children. A night time wedding may be more formal, a day time one more casual. Deciding early in the process what type of wedding you want will help you make decisions.

• Work backwards
Your venue and your entertainment will probably have end times built in to your contract. Make sure you know what those times are before creating the start time since going over may cost you money.

• Work in 15-30 minute increments and be generous
Make sure you have plenty of “cushion” time in case something goes wrong.

• Don’t forget travel time

• Think about time when making planning decisions
If you have 200 guests and you want to have a receiving line that’s at minimum of an hour for the receiving line. Want to do “first look” pictures? That has you and your bridal party at the reception site fully dressed and made up a full hour before the wedding. Don’t want to do “first look”? That has you and your bridal party taking photos in between the ceremony and the reception.

• Include everyone and everything
You should have one big timeline that includes all your vendors and their start/stop times, as well as all the bridal party plans. Then make a second version for individual members of the bridal party that just includes their relevant information. Give the master list to vendors and put someone other than yourself in charge of it. Make sure the person you put in charge is neither too lax or too hyper!

• Relax
Wedding timelines are living, breathing things. Sometimes you’ll be ahead of schedule, sometimes slightly behind. Keep an eye on the clock, but don’t glue yourself to it. It will all work out in the end.

1. Playing DJ
It used to be that the bride and groom chose their first dance and a few other numbers and left the rest up to the band or DJ. Today though, couples are creating extensive DO NOT PLAY and MUST PLAY lists and in some cases, putting together their own set lists for the band or DJ. While we applaud anyone who cares about music, we should caution that to get the most out of professionals, you have to let them do their job. You wouldn’t stand over a chef and tell him what spices to use, so make sure to leave your DJ or band leader some wiggle room to get the party jumping.

2. REALLY Playing DJ
Always wanted to play DJ? Now is your chance. Brides and grooms are both taking a turn with the two turntables and a microphone and learning how to spin a few numbers for their reception. The image is especially fabulous if the bride is wearing a traditional wedding dress. If you like this idea, talk to your DJ about it and see if he or she can give you some lessons first.

3. Living Guest Books
Guest books are static and a little boring. New ideas in creating a guest book: hire a caricature artist to create caricatures of your guests, a silhouette artist to create silhouettes, or use a photo booth with props and let guests create their own entries. Or, provide a backdrop like you see at Red Carpet premiers and have someone take photos as people come in, using an onsite printer, the photos can be printed, pasted into the book and signed before the reception is over.

4. The After Party
When Pippa Middleton hung a disco ball in Buckingham Palace she was solidifying a trend that’s been building. The post-wedding reception party is a chance for you and your nearest and dearest to really cut loose and have a great time, without all the propriety of a wedding reception. This is a great idea for couples with a lot of out of town guests, or those who are letting Mom and Dad control most of the wedding arrangements. But, keep in mind that an after party requires more alcohol, more food, and more entertainment, all of which means more money. If you’re on a budget, why not have one fantastic party that everyone can enjoy instead of two s0-so ones?

5. Thinking Beyond the Wedding Band
Almost any band from the Rolling Stones on down is available to play a wedding, for the right price. Couples that can’t afford the WOW factor the Stones would provide are looking to  bands that play both clubs AND weddings to create a hipper, more modern wedding vibe. Don’t forget, since your band leader acts as the unofficial leader of the reception, having wedding experience is important.

6. Losing the Set Break
Musicians and DJs still need a break, but couples are making the most of this former down time to showcase other show-stopping entertainment from stilt walkers to belly dancers.

7. Adding a Multicultural Flare
It used to be that when couples from two different cultures got married one culture took prominence in the wedding plans. Today though, couples are looking to incorporate traditions from all sides of the family resulting in weddings with mariachi bands AND bagpipers or requests for bands that can play Klezmer music as well as songs with an island beat.

8. Glamming it Up
No, you don’t have to have an all David Bowie play list, but this year’s weddings definitely have a glitzy glam feel to them. Ask your band or DJ to put a little extra sparkle in to their outfits.

9. Smaller Is Better
From bridal bouquets to guest lists, the trend this year is for smaller. Smaller guest lists save money and allow you to concentrate on the people and things you really want at your wedding, like great entertainment.

10. Being Yourself
As weddings have become more individualized some of the traditional elements from wedding cakes to bouquet throws have become less and less “must do.” There will always be people who like the garter toss, or the money dance, but this year more and more brides and grooms are picking and choosing the traditions that speak to them. If you don’t like the garter toss, don’t do it! Spend that time on an extra dance spotlighting your stepparents. Hate toasts? Don’t allow them, keep your DJ in charge of the mic.

Looking for the latest in wedding entertainment inspiration and wedding trends? Visit our daily wedding blog.

REPLY: Even though these cultures all have different traditions and music, the good news is that they are all “island cultures” so any sort of island related band (steel band, calypso, reggae) should have the appropriate instruments to be able to play songs from all of the cultures, as well as more standard wedding fare.

Depending on your budget, here are some ideas:
• Hire a live band with an island flare for the entire reception (hiring a band that has wedding experience will save you hassle and money)
• Hire a live “island” band for the cocktail hour and hire a DJ for the rest of the reception
• Hire a DJ for the entire evening, but provide him/her with traditional music.
• Hire a regular wedding band or DJ for the evening, but hire a solo steel drummer, reggae or Latin singer to provide traditional music or presentations during the reception.
• Incorporate the cultural aspects into the wedding ceremony instead of the reception. This could be done either with songs (live or recorded) or by making sure to include the customs of the various cultures.

You may want to talk to older relatives and get a list of either traditional songs or customs.

I’d suggest looking at our soloists page: http://www.gigmasters.com/soloists/
As well as our “genres”: http://www.gigmasters.com/genres/

Most importantly, it gives your caterer and entertainment time to set up.

So, the cocktail hour is ESPECIALLY important if you’re having your ceremony and reception in the same room. You’ll need time for someone to take down the chairs from the ceremony and set up the tables for dinner, as well as set up the bandstand or DJ booth.

You’ll need to have some place else to move all the guests for the hour. This is something to talk to the venue about, most places have a nice hallway or other room that can be used.

An exception to this would be if you’re not doing any change of set up between the wedding ceremony and the reception.

One idea is to have one “event.” Instead of having people come in, sit down and wait for the wedding to start, you and your groom meet the guests, everyone has a drink and mingles, music plays and then about an hour into it, you hold your ceremony with your friends standing around you in a circle. After the ceremony, the party continues, with dinner served. This can actually be quite elegant and sophisticated, as long as you plan on keeping the guest list small and the ceremony short.

If you like this idea, you’ll need to make sure that all your vendors understand that the plan is for things to move seemlessly from ceremony to reception, with no break and that they will need to be completely set up at least an hour before the start of the party.

We recommend thinking of this as starting a conversation, as opposed to demanding a certain price. Try and find out a little bit more from the band about why their costs are what they are and what those costs include (travel, parking, set up and tear down?).

Be polite, and ask if they have any room to negotiate in their price. Keep in mind that if your wedding is at a popular time or on a popular date (Saturday night, holiday weekend) the band may have less room to negotiate.

Also keep in mind that in your working life you have have a salary or hourly rate for your services. You may or may not be able to take a job for less than you’re currently making. Your wedding professionals are just that, professionals. They have their own costs and are entitled to make a fair living.

One problem that brides and grooms frequently have is that they’ve set an arbitrary budget for certain services, before doing any research. Make sure to get three to five bids for any services so that you can make sure both your original number, and the amount you’re paying is reasonable.

Most wedding sites will say yes, because frankly, most wedding sites sell advertising to wedding planners.

The truth is, wedding planners absolutely are a great investment. They can save you time and money and help make your wedding planning and your wedding day more enjoyable. They also make things go much smoother for your entertainment and we have to love that.

A lot of planners offer great “day of” packages, which can help things run smoothly and are affordable to couples who can’t afford a full service planner. But, only people living in fantasyland honestly believe that even a day of wedding planner is in everyone’s budget.

Before you get too far in to your planning, I’d advise you to meet with no more than three reputable local planners. Ask friends and family for recommendations, and look at review sites.

When you meet with the planner ask about their specific services, and how those services can help you and your wedding day. Yes, you’ll need to ask about costs, but try to focus more on the value the planner is offering than the cost.

After you’ve met with three planners, ask yourself if you think they can help you. If so, then look at your budget and see if there’s space for a planner. If there isn’t, ask yourself what was most important or appealing to you about what the planners offered. Then ask yourself how you can utilize friends, family and other vendors to help fill those gaps.

Studies show that dancing can burn over 260 calories per hour–a burn rate equivalent to a fast walk. If regularly practiced, dancing can lead to a slower heart rate, lower blood pressure and improved cholesterol levels, all signs of improved health and fitness. Dancing also is proven to lead to a sense of “well being” and confidence (no small thing when walking down an aisle in front of all your friends and family), and lastly, practice makes perfect so you’ll be able to shake your bon-bon even better come wedding day.

Here’s a look at what each of the hottest dance-based fitness routines can do for your big day countdown:

Ball Room Dancing: harder than it looks and major core strengthener. Bonus: exercise can double as practice for your first dance together. Of course, you can use GigMasters to find ballroom dancers to wow your crowd.

Cardio Salsa: low-impact, high-intensity. Bonus: you can totally unveil your moves at the reception…or wait until the honeymoon. You can use GigMasters to find salsa dancers.

Vegas Jazz: think sexy and sleek while maintaing ultra-straight posture (ala an ostrich feather crown). Lots of high kicks with constantly engaged core.

Belly Dance: This ancient Middle Eastern dance is experiencing a total come back. Obviously the belly shake and hip wiggling can come in handy elsewhere. For a total theme, hire a few belly dancers to entertain guests while they chow down on Middle Eastern fare.

If this all sounds a little too exotic, take a (dance) step back and start with the basics. Just like practicing your vows, or checking that honeymoon hotel reservation over…and over…, it never hurts to make sure you feel steady on your feet for the big day.

Gigmasters Wedding Dance Tip: Do this in the shoes you plan to wear! Both of you! Women are always dreading some kind of slip or stumble in their heels but men rarely give it a thought until after they fall. A quick scuffing outside for new loafers can make all the difference…especially on a rented, newly oiled dance floor!

What if you can’t drag your spouse-to-be to dance class? (I know mine wouldn’t go!) Here are few things to consider:

Go with a friend or someone else you’re going to be dancing with. Bridesmaids or groomsmen are perfect to ask because they almost have to say yes.
If you’re the bride, bring your father, or the groom, bring your mother. You’ll be “on stage” with them as well and no harm in fulfilling your required dance card in style.
Don’t be afraid to try this stuff alone—with a DVD—or join a class with a lot of other people in the same boat as you. If you’re willing to try on 14 different gowns with a fitting room attendant you don’t know from Adam, why not shake your bon-bon with strangers, as well?

Last but not least, it’s your big day and (hopefully) you only get one. Take the time to think about your wedding dances, past the song choice, and you’ll create a special memory for you, and your guests.