Guide Galas and fundraising dinners
A gala run of show, minute by minute
The sample run of show we start from for a fundraising dinner, with a template you can copy or download. Change the times and keep the structure.
A run of show is one table: time, segment, who is on, the cue for AV, and notes. Write one line for every moment someone speaks, the lights change or food moves. Give each line one owner. Put the program between courses, keep the fundraising ask before dessert, and finish the sponsor thank-yous before the dancing starts.
The sample run of show
A seated dinner for 300 with doors at 6:00 p.m. Times are a starting point; your venue's kitchen sets the real ones.
| Time | Segment | Who | AV and light cue | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3:00 PM | Load-in and room set | Venue, AV, decor | Screens up, stage lit for checks | Table numbers and place cards out by 4:30 |
| 4:30 PM | AV and speaker check | Producer, MC, AV | Run every slide, video and walk-in song | Every mic tested at the podium and on the floor |
| 5:15 PM | Volunteer and staff briefing | Producer | Pre-show loop on screens | Registration, auction, seating and sponsor greeters |
| 5:45 PM | Hold the doors | Producer | House lights to reception level | Final walk of the room with the venue captain |
| 6:00 PM | Doors, reception, silent auction opens | Registration, bar | Reception music, sponsor loop | Sponsors and VIPs met at the door |
| 6:50 PM | Call to seats | MC (voice of God) | Chime, music down | Two calls, five minutes apart |
| 7:00 PM | Welcome | MC | Walk-in music out, MC spot | Housekeeping: exits, washrooms, auction close time |
| 7:04 PM | Land acknowledgement | Elder or chair | Podium spot | Confirm wording and honorarium in advance |
| 7:08 PM | Chair's welcome | Board chair | Name slide | Three minutes |
| 7:12 PM | First course | Venue | Dinner music, lights to dinner level | Kitchen gets the go from the producer |
| 7:40 PM | Presenting sponsor remarks | Sponsor, MC | Sponsor slide | Two minutes, agreed in the sponsor contract |
| 7:45 PM | Main course | Venue | Dinner music | Quiet program time |
| 8:20 PM | Impact story | Speaker or video | Lights down, video or speaker spot | The reason people give. Five to seven minutes |
| 8:30 PM | Fundraising ask | Chair or auctioneer | Giving levels slide | Before dessert, while the room is listening |
| 8:45 PM | Dessert | Venue | Dinner music | Volunteers collect pledge cards |
| 9:00 PM | Live auction | Auctioneer | Item slides | Five items at most |
| 9:20 PM | Silent auction closes | MC | Countdown slide | Close in sections, not all at once |
| 9:25 PM | Sponsor thank-yous and the total raised | Chair | Sponsor wall slide | Every sponsor named, in the order approved |
| 9:35 PM | Entertainment and dancing | Band or DJ | Dance lighting | Program is over; no more speeches |
| 10:45 PM | Auction pickup and last call | Auction volunteers, bar | House lights up at 11:00 | Payment at pickup |
| 11:00 PM | Close and load-out | Producer, venue, AV | Work lights | Count the auction and pledges before anyone leaves |
Copy the template
Take the sample above as a starting file. Download it as a spreadsheet, or copy it and paste it straight into Excel or Google Sheets.
Rules that keep it on time
- One owner per line. The "Who" column names a person, not a committee.
- Write the cue, not just the moment. "Lights down, video" is something the AV tech can act on. "Video" isn't.
- Food runs the night. Agree course times with the kitchen first, then fit the program into the gaps.
- Speakers get a time, and a warning. Tell each speaker their minutes in writing and put a two-minute card at the front of the stage.
- Sponsors are named in the order they agreed. Check the spelling and the pronunciation the week before.
- Freeze it 14 days out. After that, changes go through the producer so every copy matches.
The cut list
Dinners run late. Decide before the night what goes first if you're behind, so nobody negotiates at the side of the stage.
- Shorten the MC's housekeeping and transitions
- Drop to three live auction items
- Move the chair's welcome into the sponsor thank-you
- Close the silent auction from the screen instead of the stage
Never cut the impact story, the fundraising ask or the sponsor thank-yous. They are why the room is full.
Gala and Fundraising Dinner Production From $7,500 per gala
Want a producer to run the night?
We write the run of show and vendor plan, the program and sponsor recognition, and put a producer in the room. Every sponsor is thanked from the stage in the order you approve. You get the run of show 14 days before the event, or $500 off the invoice.
Or see Gala Production. You sign and pay vendors directly. Full terms.