Should I do the Dollar Dance at My wedding?
There are a couple schools of thought to consider when it comes to dancing the Dollar Dance at your wedding. The idea of the Dollar Dance is to raise money for the newlyweds honeymoon costs, or in some cultures, the money is designated for the couple’s first born child. The way the Dollar Dance works is, the best man and maid of honor collect money from guests at the wedding for the chance to dance a short amount of time (30 seconds) with the bride and/or groom.
Let’s start with the positives of this tradition. This is a time to get a few seconds of one on one time with a decent amount of your guests. If your photographer is willing (I have met some that aren’t) to take pictures during this time, you can have some great one on one shots with a lot of your friends and family. Secondly, you could make some money. Weddings are expensive and anything you can do to put a dent in that final bill… or have some pocket money for your honeymoon that is certainly a bonus. Lastly, it might be a tradition in your family. Sometimes that is enough reason to do stuff, tradition, if only to placate your older relatives that can’t imagine you NOT doing it.
The negative side of doing the Dollar Dance. A lot of people find this dance tacky. Your guest have forgone all other plans for the day, they have probably bought a new dress, or tie or something, they bought you a gift and now you are asking for more money from them. The fact that it’s only a dollar could make that point moot, but I think it becomes more the principal of it. As a DJ, I don’t like it because I am all about involving as many people as I can on the dance floor to create the party. A dollar dance typically last 4-5 songs minimum so you are looking at 20-30 minutes of the majority of your guests sitting or standing around watching other people dance one at a time. A reception that is in full swing with lots of dancing and fun will become like a deflating balloon really quickly once the dollar dance starts and it makes building the momentum back up sometimes challenging. Lastly, I would look at the financial part of things. I think it’s fairly typical to be paying at least $100 an hour for your DJ. If you do the dollar dance for a half an hour and from that you make $75, in reality you took the air out of a party, for something that half of your guests might think is tacky, to net $25.
At the end of the day, it’s your wedding and do whatever you want. I am just trying to give you some food for thought as you think about your special day. Good luck with your planning.
