Whether you are planning a small Bar/Bat
Mitzvah celebration and party or a large event with several activities
requiring seating arrangements. It can be a real problem! But stay calm and stay organized. You dont know who to put where, who
is speaking to who, your
guests who may have things in common or would love to meet new people,
guests who respond, "yes, they are coming and decide, "I cant come!"
and cancel. Or at the last minute Guests who want to come, or said
"no" and changed their minds.
Some people think sitting up in front of the band is the worst! Others
think sitting in front of the band means you have the best seats at the
event. So, you'll never win? You can't please everyone!
One other thing. If you are assigning table numbers, you must get
this information to your calligrapher (if she is doing the
seating
cards or Invitations) in plenty of time. (Ask them what time frame
they need). Remember, there will always be changes. Ask your calligrapher
how they want to handle the last minute drop-outs and drop-ins.
How to use
this chart:
1. Determine
how many guests you're planning for your bar/bat mitzvah
weekend events.
2. Go down the left column and scan across to the right
based on the type of party you're having for the bar/bat
mitzvah Friday dinner, Saturday evening party or the Sunday
brunch..
3. Add some extra space so people are comfortable,
especially if you plan on having a bar, buffet lines, stage
etc.
4. Add those numbers up and that will tell you how much
total area (sq ft²) you need for your function. Depending
on your event, you may want to add some extra space or go to
the next larger size then what is estimated simply because
extra room is always better than not enough.
Ideas for
seating space:
This is only a
basic guide, don't cast these numbers in stone after you
determine what amount of space you think you'll need. Each
event is different and these numbers should be used as a
starting point only. Then, once you work out the details,
fine tune things depending on what your budget is and your
preferences. See down this page for some examples of how to
figure out required sizes.
So here is a trusted guide to help with your seating
plans for your Bar/Bat Mitzvah events.
Now remember to consider the size of the tables:
36" table seats 4 or less
48" table seats 6-8 (6 comfortably)
60" table seats 8-10 (8 very comfortably, but most people do
put 10 at these; fewer centerpieces after all!)
72" table seats 10-12 (10 very comfortably)
The next question: Whats considered a
good table location?
Recommended Area
Required Per Person in Square Feet
Number
Of
Guests
Stand Up
Cocktail Party
6 ft² / person
Seated
in Rows
8 ft² / person
Seated
at 8' tables
10 ft² / person
Seated at
5' round tables
12 ft² / person
Dance
Floor Size
5 ft² / person
Add For
Bar Area or Buffet Lines
100 ft² per 50 guests
50
300
400
500
600
125
100
75
450
600
750
900
188
150
100
600
800
1000
1200
250
200
125
750
1000
1250
1500
313
250
150
900
1200
1500
1800
375
300
175
1050
1400
1750
2100
438
350
200
1200
1600
2000
2400
500
400
225
1350
1800
2250
2700
563
450
250
1500
2000
2500
3000
625
500
275
1650
2200
2750
3300
688
550
300
1800
2400
3000
3600
750
600
325
1950
2600
3250
3900
813
650
350
2100
2800
3500
4200
875
700
400
2400
3200
4000
4800
1000
800
450
2700
3600
4500
5400
1125
900
500
3000
4000
5000
6000
1250
1000
550
3300
4400
5500
6600
1375
1100
600
3600
4800
6000
7200
1500
1200
Tent Sizes
Most full scale Rental Venues can supply
and set up the following tent sizes to match what ever you needs are for
your event. The following list of sizes to the suggested capacity in
square feet and then you can easily determine what size of tent that you
or your event planner may utilize for your event.
Size
Sq. Ft²
Size
Sq. Ft²
10 x 10
100
40 x 60
2400
10 x 20
200
40 x 80
3200
15 x 15
225
40 x 100
4000
20 x 20
400
40 x 120
4800
20 x 30
600
40 x 140
5600
20 x 40
800
60 x 60
3600
20 x 60
1200
60 x 80
4800
30 x 30
900
60 x 100
6000
34 Hexagon
1044
60 x 120
7200
30 x 60
1800
60 x 140
8400
30 x 90
2700
60 x 160
9600
Example:
You want to seat 125 people for any special event such as a
bar/bat mitzvah party or a wedding ceremony in your back yard and then have everyone mingle
for a while for some cocktails and perhaps some finger food.
What size of tent will work best?
Answer #1: 125 people seated in rows is suggested to be 1000 ft. from
the seating chart. The closest to that size is a 34-Hex tent @
1044 ft. To have room for people to mingle you can either clear
the chairs and use the same tent or add a 20x20 joined together
and only clear half the chairs and your ready for the party to
begin with everyone comfortable.
Answer #2: If you wanted to add a sit-down reception to your same
wedding guests as answer #1 here is what you can do. Rearrange
the tent and bring in some round banquet tables for the
reception dinner after the ceremony and add some buffet tables.
You would need the following to do this:
125 guests @ 12 ft² per person = 1500 sq. ft needed. Add
another 300-500 sq. ft. for buffet tables, gift table, M.C.
platform etc and you arrive at around 2000 ft. total tenting
needed. This works perfectly for using two Hex-34 tents joined
together and looks great for weddings. You can have sliding
walls all around to easily adjust for nice weather or keeping it
warm later in the evening.
