Reception Flow -- Dinner & Dancing in Separate Spaces?

mkmurphy11

Hello,
I'm debating (perhaps agonizing a bit too much) about how to use our reception space for our upcoming early Sept wedding in Massachusetts.  It's a large mansion with two floors and a tent on a patio adjacent (though not contiguous with the building). 

The first floor has a large ballroom, but it will be too small for all our guests to sit for dinner (fits 85, we'll have about 110), so we'll for sure be eating in the tent.  However, the inside of the mansion is so pretty, I'd like to use it for some portions of the reception too.  So I am debating between the following:

Option 1:
Cocktails in ballroom/veranda
Dinner in tent
Dancing in tent (ie never go back inside)
Pros: less choppy moving from one place to another, everyone (including older crowd) in same space for post-dinner fun
Cons: no dance floor outside (though brick patio is likely fine for dancing), miss out on the pretty inside of mansion for most part

Option 2:
Cocktails in ballroom/veranda
Dinner in tent
Dancing/Dessert bar etc back inside in ballroom and other rooms
Pros: Makes use of the inside space including upstairs rooms which would be more "lounge-y" for the older non-dancing crowd, ballroom obviously has dance floor
Cons: does this chop up the flow of things too much?  Will people not like losing their "assigned" seat -- we'll still have as many seats as people in sum spread out through all the rooms.

I would love opinions, so please vote!!

ajroark

I like option 2 since you get the most out of your space and you have a designated dancing area.

tenofcups4me

Option 2 allows you to use more of the space, but I honestly don't think it works as well for the guests. Once I come in and get settled at my table, I don't want to lose my table or have to go somewhere else for dancing and not have a "home base."

I went to a wedding with a similar set up last fall and one additional way they used the interior space was by setting up a dessert table/coffee bar inside even though the dancing was outside in the same space as the dinner. Gave us a chance to go in and wander through the mansion but it wasn't inconvenient and didn't require a wholesale change midway through.

lthom17

Option 2---definitely.  If the weather is nice in Sept., your guests will enjoy eating dinner outside anyway.  But if you have a ballroom, you should def. make use of that!  You could set up tables along the perimeter with chairs for people who want to sit there (I know you will have chairs inside, but not sure if you thought about a few tables too)--maybe 4-6 tables of 10? 

As a younger guest, I would like moving to another room to dance--keeps it exciting.  Older guests will def. want somewhere to sit and watch the dancing though.

cschuma2

I would choose option one just because it keeps everyone together all night. 

I don't get super excited about dancing, and likely would be dancing just a little bit.  I wouldn't want to be in a completely separate room while I'm mingling.  The way I'm imagining it, it seems like after dinner there will feel like two different parties- one for dancing, and one without. 

I also think this will make it much more difficult for you and your groom.  If you're dancers, your chatty/sitting guests in another room won't get to see you much.  Visa versa if you're not dancers.  I just hate for some of your guests to feel slighted.  When everyone is in the same room, I feel like I'm with the bride and groom still even if they're dancing and I'm not.

mkmurphy11

Thanks for opinions all!  To clarify, the ballroom is pretty good-sized (just slightly too small to all eat for dinner -- which I don't really mind as I think dinner outside will be nice!), so we'd have about half of it with tables/chairs if we danced inside (so maybe about 6 tables of 7-8), and then the dessert bar and actual bar in two adjacent rooms across a foyer.  In the foyer, we'd also have some tables (imagining high ones with stools or without chairs).  The upstairs would have more seating but would definitely be quieter and away from the action.  Remains a debate -- at least I don't feel bad about being conflicted given the variety of opinions here!
M