A great honor! You're asked to be the master of ceremonies on a wedding. An MC has a very important role on a wedding. But what are your duties? What is expected from you? No worries, we'll give you the inside information and tips to make sure you can manage this big day perfectly.
What are the duties of a wedding master of ceremonies?
As MC you have a great responsibility. You'll more or less be the central point of contact during the day while the bride and groom enjoy their day. Bear in mind that being an MC can be stressful at times, so before you accept, however great the honor, make sure you don't freak out instantly when something does not go as planned. You want to shield the wedding couple from any stress and handle all questions and problems that come their way. So, are you good at organizing and stress resistant? Then this is the perfect job for you!
First of all, before the wedding, start by talking to the wedding couple. (Almost) everything you will do, will be in according to their wishes. After all, it's their big day! Make sure you compose a list of things to do, to know exactly what lies ahead and what is done, but also to be sure nothing gets done twice.
Duties of the MC
- Make sure guests know that you are the MC and that they can direct any questions or comments at you. This alone will take away a great workload and deal of stress from the bridal couple.
- Make sure there's a script for the day. You can make this together with the bridal couple or ask what their wishes are and show your suggested script to them. At all times respect their wishes. Of course it may be nice to build in a little surprise for them, but in general you want to make absolutely sure they know what will happen. Hand a print of your script to the most important guests of the wedding, such as the bridal couple, parents, close friends and family.
- Make sure you have all contact details of the most important persons, ask the bridal couple for this.
- Make a to-do-list together with the bridal couple.
- It's common for the MC to also take care of the decoration. For example, make sure that the parents' home or place of departure is nicely decorated, but also the tables of the restaurant where you will all dine.
- Do not forget the corsages! In general the master of ceremonies will take of pinning the corsages on the bridal couple and guests.
- Make sure the wedding guest line-up from city hall or church is correct. Instruct the guests where necessary. And… maybe add some festive confetti? Note: at some city halls or churches, it's not allowed to throw confetti or rice. So, make sure to inform ahead of time what's possible. Looking for something original? The also read the article on wedding confetti alternatives.
- During the day you must keep a close eye on everything. Is everything running smoothly? Is there somewhere where you can lend a helping hand? Is the bridal couple happy? Are all the guests enjoying themselves?
- Do not forget to ask for help if needed. A wedding is a lot of work and you can't handle everything by yourself and that's totally ok. Make sure you don't wait too long to ask for help to prevent you run out of time and into issues. Many guests will be happy to assist!
- And last but not least; enjoy! If something does not go exactly according to plan, it's not the end of the world. Try not to stress too much, because the bridal couple will notice that. Enjoy!
Will you have a master of ceremonies at your wedding? And who will you choose for that role?