This past weekend, I headed to Maggiano’s Little Italy with Michael Sherman to perform at a wedding. It was my first visit to Maggiano’s. With so many attractions in Chicago (especially around N. Clark St.,) restaurant awnings can easily blend together. This is a restaurant I’m glad I didn’t miss. Not just because I was hired to work there and would have destroyed a wedding reception had I missed it, but also because it’s a GREAT Italian restaurant that I plan on visiting again.
A Little Friendly Competition At Little Italy
Okay, I confess. There was no competition that night. But as you can see from the picture to the right, the bar area of Maggiono’s does have a baby grand, making it all the more appealing for me. Even had someone been playing that night, it wouldn’t have mattered or interfered in any way. In fact, there could have been another wedding with a DJ that night, and it wouldn’t have mattered. This place is enormous, and it contains sound extremely well.
We played in a lower level ballroom type area, and I’m certain that even when we got to the DJ dance portion of the night and cranked up the volume, it didn’t disturb a single person upstairs.
Here is the lower level where we played. At this time guests were just taking their seats.
To Dance Or Not To Dance
It was not our first time to be warned before a show that their guests may be shy about dancing. Sometimes the hosts don’t know the guests as well as they think. Our job is to ensure people have a great time, and at a wedding, dancing is pretty much a must. But for a more complete understanding of how we work a dance floor, I suggest you read our blog post entitled, “Dueling Pianos – Will My Wedding Dance?”
If I were a photographer, I would certainly want to take some action photos of people hitting the dance floor. Robert Wojtowicz and a crew handled the photo/video for the night. I would love to see the results. But it’s possible they are not yet available at his website.
In any event, they danced the entire night. When we were initially told that their crowd may be shy, we immediately through that concept out the window, knowing that we would have them on the floor with no problems.
Hava Nagila Dueling Piano Style
Speaking of dancing… The groom is Jewish, so having the request to play Hava Nagila pretty much ensures that people are going to dance no matter what. Heck they could have sang it all on their own and clapped their hands, and they’d be dancing up a frenzy!
Wondering what Hava Nagila sounds like dueling piano style? Take a look at some video we captured.
We’d love to play for your wedding or event! Fill out our short contact form. It only takes a second! 🙂
Be the first to leave a review.
