Rehearsal Question

hwoychowski

Does the rehearsal need to be at the same location as the ceremony? What are the benefits that we may be overlooking by not doing it there? Our venue does not 'come with' the rehearsal space so we would need to pay extra for it. Also, since FMIL has graciously offered to throw a Rehearsal Dinner at her place, I was thinking we could do the rehearsal in her back yard? (We are having an outdoor ceremony so it would not be TOO out of place - I think). And yet another thing we are thinking about it sunlight. Without asking the wedding party to leave work early, the earliest start time would be like 6pm, and in MN the sun is setting at 6:15 that time of year. (Our ceremony is at 3pm for this exact reason). Thoughts?

AdeleDazeem

Nope, you definitely don't need to rehearse at the location.  A lot of people think YOU MUST REHEARSE THERE!!!! but it's really unnecessary, especially if it requires your bridal party to come into town a day early or rehearse at, like, 2 in the afternoon. 

Weddings are really easy.  We didn't even have a rehearsal for our own.  Walk in, stand, smile, walk out.  Easy peasy.  Don't make them get off work early or worry about sunlight.  Have it the night before at a reasonable dinner time and relax.  It'll be great!

hwoychowski

Thank you. I was thinking about having no sunlight before asking the WP to take time off work! LOL! Thanks, I think it will be more relaxing for everyone to have it FMIL's. My family from out of town arrives that day so we were going to invite them. Now they can hang out and do their own thing rather than watching us then going to her place to mingle. Easy - I need to remember that.

jcrmc

Only reason I want to have a rehersal is so the little ones know what's going on with a bunch of ppl around (two of them are pretty shy unless they know the ppl). Otherwise, yeah - walk down, stand, smile, walk out.

Having it at a different place and a different time of day won't matter at all, as long as you can see where you're going!! You could even have it *inside* rather than outside, as it's really just a go-thru of the WP order etc.

hwoychowski

There are no children in the wedding. Our friend's children are too young, and frankly they are using this as a 'night out' and we dont have any young ones in our families. So no problem there. The venue for the ceremony is in a garden - so no lighting whereas the FMIL's backyard is lit up and perfect for the get together. I am thinking definitely the way to go. Thanks!!!!

AdeleDazeem

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_ceremony-ideas_rehearsal-question-1?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:10Discussion:c3a3207a-5513-443d-88dd-4486fa01438bPost:b93f7b90-fa7a-4fba-8c8f-c9ddc23328ce">Re:Rehearsal Question</a>:
[QUOTE]Joy isn't completely right because not all weddings can rehearse at another location without it creating issues. Some weddings, like ours, DO need a rehearsal in the space due to odd layouts or technical issues like sound. We couldn't even begin to figure out how the WP was standing until we had everyone in there. And since there was no micing at all, one of the soloists and reader really wanted to do it in the space once to adjust for accoustics. But, that being said, if you don't have anything too weird about your venue or tech requirements, then you're fine to have it elsewhere. As far as sunset, I'd say you need to figure out a way to light the yard artificially or find an indoor place to have it.
Posted by StageManager14[/QUOTE]

I will agree that *some* weddings are more complicated than others, but sometimes the couple makes the rehearsal far more complicated than it needs to be. 

For my friend's wedding, we rehearsed in a hotel ballroom.  The next day at the site, I had to stand somewhere differently and was in a slightly odd location compared to the rest of the bridal party.  The groom showed me.  I did it.  The end.  No one freaked and I appreciate it.

I really take offense to couples who think that the bridal party needs to take off work early or even come into town two days early for their rehearsal.  If you are requiring that, you're doing it wrong.  A rehearsal shouldn't be so dire that your missing it or rehearsing off-site makes or breaks the wedding.  If it does, rethink what's happening.

hwoychowski

Woah there.....

1) All friends in 15-20 mile radius
2) Kids/ Babies / Infants invited to rehearsal so no babysitter issues
3) Lighting is perfect at FMIL's house as FI and I just gave his mom a 'backyard makeover' for mothers day
4) Would rather use flashlights than make friends leave work early (sunlight issues)
5) I would like to have them there, thats why I am making sure everything is super accommodating as the ceremony area is very a-typical (no aisle, seats arranged semi-circle), however, I feel this could be expressed without being at the actual location as long as I show them a picture first. However, would not be the end of the world if someone could not make it.

librababy

Not sure how we're doing the rehearsal but it most likely will be at my house where the dinner will be.  For us it's just to practice making sure timing is right... and also to make sure we get the music right.  Nothing tricky (I hope) but we still need to practice since most of my bp has never walked in a wedding before and I am doing things a little differently.