Affecting the Moment

There’s so much that can be done to affect the moment!

Back in 1975, I was teaching grade school general music in Caldwell, NJ. Each term the school scheduled an evening musical. All mommies, daddies, aunts and uncles were invited to see the kids perform. How the production was received revealed what kind of program I was conducting, and perhaps more pointedly, it revealed whether or not I was any good as a teacher. So, everything needed to go off just right. I had a lot of parents to impress, and of course if they were impressed, my principal would be impressed. Because each musical was like the summation of the job I was doing for the school, by necessity I had to make sure all the bases were covered. Great motivation..

Indeed, this was my first exposure to planning, rehearsing, and directing entertainment. Though we weren’t charging $100 a ticket, and though the presentation wasn’t in Carnegie Hall, all the ingredients were there—the pacing, the staging, and of course, the performances themselves. Everything contributed to the audience’s overall experience. Those school musicals were like a microcosmic proving ground consisting of days and days of behind-the-scenes preparation. You might think the more I did it, the easier it got. Well, in some respects, yes. Along with experience and repetition, I did become familiar with the framework and the process. But, expectations were always high, and each new musical had to include new material and new creativity. Therefore, the planning and preparation curve remained constant. If anything, even more time, energy, and effort were required as our performances became more ambitious.

In many, many, many respects . . . this is just like a wedding. Both the wedding ceremony and reception consist of a series of events that happen in a special sequence. When these events are entertaining, family and friends enjoy themselves from beginning to end. There are heartfelt memorable moments, laughter, applause, and cheers. Best of all, unlike a movie, concert, or stage show, attendees of an entertaining wedding are included in the festivities. They’re made to feel they’re a part of the celebration with continual opportunities to participate. This kind of presentation presents a real challenge, as well as a wonderful opportunity, to anyone vested with the responsibility of providing remarkable wedding entertainment. And yes, just like any well-conceived, well-staged presentation that is entertainingly successful, the best kind of wedding entertainment requires extensive planning, preparation, rehearsing, and let’s not forget, direction.

Here are two clips that epitomize well-rehearsed and superbly-staged wedding segments. NOTE: They’re not for every wedding, nor are they supposed to be. But, they are entertaining, and definitely a reflection of the bride and groom! This first one is the widely-viewed, very well-known wedding processional in which the wedding party dances their way down the church aisle to “Forever” by Chris Brown.

A Good PARTY! Not a Good “DJ”