What are the different seating and table arrangements for events?
- Auditorium Stage Seating
- Classroom Style Seating
- Dinner and Show Seating
- Banquet Style Seating
- Cocktail Style Seating
Are you conducting a corporate-wide business lunch meeting, product launch event, or a formal celebration? Knowing the types of seating and table arrangements are as important as considering other essential aspects of event planning. Once you have the list of attendees and floor layout, it should be easier for you to determine the seating and table arrangement. It should also be easier to choose the right venue or size of the function hall to obtain.
Among the list, some of the most common table arrangements are the theatre, classroom, banquet, and cocktails. Yet, there are more that you may not be aware of. Read on to discover other seating arrangements that are applicable to most halls.
Auditorium Stage Seating
Auditorium, commonly referred to as theater, is a type of seating arrangement suitable for over 100 guests. It is the simplest seating arrangement, with the chairs aligned in consecutive straight rows. If you are inviting over 300 guests, make sure to rent at least 3 function rooms with an approximate area of 140 square meters for each room. Most venues have folding partitions and walls that allow you to extend the size of the room to accommodate more guests.
The auditorium stage setting is suitable for events such as business forums, inspirational speakers, or any gathering that will not take hours of sitting. Since the seating arrangement lacks the use of tables, there is no suitable way to serve guests with refreshments. With that, leave an area at the back of the function room where you can provide for a set up for some snacks and refreshing drinks. Make sure there is ample space in the area when guests take their breaks and grab snacks.
There is no need to allocate a huge percentage of the floor for the buffet set up or lounge space if you do not plan to serve full meals. Although, one of the best ways to attract attendees is to provide snacks, drinks, and other freebies.
Classroom Style Seating
As the term suggests, the classroom-style seating makes use of chairs and IBM tables, arranged in rows and columns. This arrangement is similar to those that are found in schools. The number of desks depends on the event, preference of the speaker, or availability of space and inventory of tables. Most of the time, one IBM table can accommodate at least two to three people. With this set-up, interaction amongst participants is encouraged.
The classroom-style seating arrangement allows for note-taking and can even allow participants to dine in their seats. They are most suitable for workshops that would require tables to perform some activities. Often, this kind of seating arrangement is used for training, seminars or forums conducted by inspirational speakers or best for training programs conducted to enhance employee’s growth and development.
Dinner and Show Seating
Similar to a lounge room, dinner and show seating is an arrangement ideal for breakout sessions after product launches, conferences, or inter-company business meetings. Breakout sessions are usually organized as part of the agenda of a larger program or event. These sessions are held mostly with the purpose of discussion and interaction amongst participants and to learn more about other topics relevant to the program. The tables are arranged in a way that promotes collaboration so attendees can meet and network.
Banquet Style Seating
The banquet style seating is perfect for weddings and birthdays. It is also suited for corporate events such as appreciation parties, charity events, as well as team-building events. It is a classic seating arrangement that makes use of round tables for 8 to 10 persons. The position of seats where participants are facing each other encourages interaction with one another.
To make weddings and birthdays more organized, create a seating chart that assigns guests to particular tables. With round tables, there is freedom in grouping more than 8 persons per table. On the other hand, business-related events always seat important guests in either the middle or front tables.
Cocktail Style Seating
Commonly used for exhibition and product launches, the cocktail-style seating, frees up floor space so guests can roam around without restriction. Usually, charcuterie and pica-pica are the kinds of food served in an event that makes use of the cocktail-style seating.
In a 95 square-meter function room, almost 16-18 standard-sized cocktail tables can be set up to accommodate at least a hundred attendees. For larger cocktail parties, find venues that offer halls with the capacity to accommodate at least 400 cocktail tables. Reducing the number of cocktail tables allows for a huge production setup, which enables product launches to be even more interactive.
Key Takeaway
If you are looking for seating and table arrangements for your event, choose to perform an ocular visit to a venue in Manila. You will find it easier to visualize a suitable type of seating arrangement for your next event. Whether you are celebrating a wedding or a corporate occasion, you must align the table arrangements with the venue to ensure everyone will fit in the space.
