introduction
by Peter Merry

As the guests arrive for the wedding reception, they can't help but notice how strikingly beautiful the ballroom looks. The floral centerpieces are mounted on golden stands displaying a vivid mixture of pink, lavender, green and red flower petals. The pale green linens on the tables give the room a feeling of being in an outdoor, garden setting. The favors feature a lavender ribbon tied in a bow on a small white box with the Bride and Groom's name and their wedding date in a handwritten font. The cake is set with four tiers and the frosting looks like a heavy, white ribbon that is rolling over the edges. The head table is on a riser with white lights illuminating the tablecloth from underneath the table. The appetizers are displayed with a touch of flair that clearly showcases the passion and creativity of the chef. The lights are slightly dimmed and the music playing in the background is a mixture of vocal jazz artists from the 40's and 50's singing songs about love. The catering staff begins to pour champagne as the MC tells the 200 guests in attendance that the Bride and Groom and their wedding party are almost ready to make their grand entrance.

Suddenly, the music volume goes up dramatically and the DJ begins to talk as if he's announcing the monster truck show on Sunday. The wedding party is introduced one couple at a time using just their first names. The Best Man is named John. He is the Groom's Father, but unless you were a friend of the Groom's family, you wouldn't have known that because the DJ fails to mention it. After the Best Man's toast, it's time for the Bride's Father and Stepfather to give a formal toast. The DJ takes the cordless microphone from the Best Man and walks to the center of the dance floor and introduces these two important men by saying, "Who wants it?", and then holds the microphone out at arm's length. Two men stand up and walk to the dance floor and make formal toasts, but unless you were a friend of the Bride's family, you wouldn't know their names, or which one of them was her Father or her Stepfather.

During dinner, the music is so loud that the guests have to shout in order to carry on a conversation. When the meal ends, the guests begin to get restless and it's a full 20 minutes from the time they have all finished eating until the special dances begin. The guests are overheard saying "When does the fun begin?" The First Dance finally starts and when it ends, it's time for the Father/Daughter Dance. The DJ announces the Father/Daughter Dance and begins to play the specially selected song as the Bride stands on the dance floor waiting for her Father to join her. But he's nowhere to be found. "Where's Dad?" asks the DJ on the microphone. A few moments later, one of the guests runs out and locates the Father of the Bride in the restroom. When her Father finally makes it out to the dance floor, the DJ starts their song all over again after making a wisecrack at Dad for not being ready. When it's time to cut the cake, the MC invites the guests to gather around. But suddenly there's a commotion over near the cake as the photographer begins to make a frantic cutting motion with his hand and it becomes evident that there is no knife at the cake table. The Bride's Mother rushes over and tells a catering staff member, who disappears into the kitchen and then comes back with a knife so the Bride and Groom can finally cut their cake.

When everyone is invited to dance, the DJ tells the guests that they all have to come out to the dance floor if they want the Bride and Groom to have a long and happy marriage. He then guides them through a series of group dances as the Bride and Groom begin to shake their heads and it becomes obvious that these were songs that they neither liked nor had requested. There are many times throughout the remainder of the evening when the dance floor just remains empty. One by one the guests begin to bid the Bride and Groom farewell. Soon, more and more guests are leaving. They have the ballroom for another hour and when the reception is over, they share their Last Dance with 20 of their closest friends.

The day has ended, they are now married, they had a good time, and their reception was "okay."

As the Bride and Groom walk down the hallway on the way to their honeymoon suite, they pass a ballroom where another wedding reception has been going on at the same time as theirs. As they pass by, the doors swing open and they see 150 guests dancing, laughing, and enjoying themselves. They overhear a couple saying to each other as they leave the room, "That was the best wedding reception.ever!"

The Bride and Groom look at each other and begin to wonder what was so different about this reception compared to their own. "What did they do that we didn't?" they asked themselves.

The truth is there are many different styles of wedding receptions.

Some wedding receptions are ordinary while others are creative. Many Brides and Grooms want a traditional reception while others strive for a more contemporary feel. Wedding receptions can range from a boring routine to a crazy party. Some receptions seem to drag on forever while others seem to flow smoothly. At many receptions, the Bride and Groom are the central focus, while at others, guest involvement is encouraged. Some wedding receptions end hours earlier than planned, while others go the distance or are even extended for several additional hours so the celebration can continue.

This book is intended to give you the most current and creative ideas for making your wedding reception a true reflection of your personality and style. You will be given a wide variety of ideas. Some of these ideas may seem inappropriate for your plans, while others may leap off the page and connect with your innermost feelings about how you have envisioned your reception. Keep this in mind as you read on, because we all have different personalities, styles, and tastes. What works for you may not be right for somebody else. But when it comes to creating your wedding reception, there are no more rules. Follow your heart and choose the ideas that inspire you.

This book will also give you clear-cut examples of things that can go wrong, like the real life examples that were incorporated into the fictional story above, and will help you increase your chances of preventing them from occurring at your reception. Learning from the mistakes and oversights of others is an important step towards making your reception as flawless as possible.

To make the information in this book more accessible, it has been broken into three parts, which comprise the three major steps you will need to take in order to create a truly memorable wedding reception celebration:

Part I : Beginning Your Production-is all about choosing the right time, finding the perfect place, and selecting the best qualified cast of players to help make your reception fantastic.

Part II : Creating Your Timeline-is all about writing a reception plan that will flow smoothly so your guests won't ever feel bored or restless.

Part III : Adding Your Personal Style-is all about putting your fingerprints on every page of your reception plan so the music, guest interactions, and memorable moments will all feel like they were created uniquely for you.

Feel free to jump ahead to any chapter that features the information you are most interested in or the solutions to issues you are currently trying to resolve. Interspersed throughout this book will also be profiles of real couples and how their creative choices and ideas made their reception celebrations not only more fun, but also more memorable and personally meaningful as well.

You will find that this book does not contain ideas and suggestions related to the decorations, food, dresses, or ways to word your invitations. There are more than enough books available that have already covered those subjects in immense detail. But the ideas and suggestions that have not been presented in the ever-popular wedding planning books, or in the well-known wedding magazines, or even on the latest "reality" wedding television shows, are creative ideas directly related to ensuring that your guests will have a wonderful time, thanks to a well-paced atmosphere and personalized entertainment.

On that point, it is important to note that this book has been written from a unique perspective.one that is focused on the overall entertainment value of your reception.

"To capture and hold your guests' attention for an extended period of time."

This purpose statement sums up what most couples truly want their wedding receptions to do: capture and hold their guests' attention. They want their guests to stay for the whole party and enjoy themselves in the process. This purpose statement can also be condensed down to one simple word.entertainment.

The significance of this fact compels us to examine wedding receptions as more than just occasions for fancy decorations, beautiful flowers, elegant formalwear and pictures that will last a lifetime. Entertainment is the primary component that will make your wedding reception everything you've dreamed it would be. A wedding reception plan that fails to acknowledge the crucial role that the entertainment plays in keeping the guests involved, interested, and enjoying themselves, can quickly result in a wedding reception experience that is tedious and mundane.

Picture your Wedding Reception as if it is happening right now and think of the three primary words you would choose to describe what you see. Would you be surprised to know that the most common word that comes to mind is "FUN"? ("Elegant" and "Unique" rounded out the top 3.) If you truly want your guests to have fun at your reception, to feel like they are an important part of your celebration instead of just bystanders, then this book was written just for you.

However, this book is not intended to promote any particular style of entertainment. Many of the ideas contained in this book can be used with a Band, a Disc Jockey, a Wedding Entertainment DirectorT or at a wedding reception that doesn't feature either. The key focus will be on recognizing simple methods that can make your reception truly fun, unique, and memorable-because you deserve to have "The Best Wedding Reception.Ever!"

Also, for additional information on the subjects covered in the book, please feel free to visit these web sites:

TheBestWeddingReceptionEver.com
WeddingEntertainmentDirector.com
MerryWeddings.com
PeterMerry.com
WEDGuild.com

Enjoy!