Casting Call: Aspiring Actors Make Great Wedding Officiants

Casting Call: Actors wanted for an exciting new role...

 

Wedding Officiant!

 

 

As an aspiring actor, making your creative life ‘work’ sometimes means cobbling together a hodge-podge collection of gigs and side hustles – jobs that come with flexible hours, and that won’t drain the life out of you as you juggle auditions, callbacks, and the rare acting job that actually pays well. 

 

And if that flexible job also helps you hone your acting skills? Even better.

 

That’s why every aspiring (and established!) actor should get ordained online to become a wedding officiant…

 

Aspiring actors make great wedding officiants.  

 

Think about it – wedding officiants perform in front of dozens, and sometimes hundreds, of people every time they’re asked to marry someone. It’s definitely not a role for someone with stage fright.

 

Need more proof? There’s a long list of actors, actresses, and other celebrities who got ordained and have officiated weddings such as Bryan Cranston, Ian McKellan, Emma Stone, Steven Colbert… you get the picture. 

 

Related: 10 Beloved Celebrity Wedding Officiants & the Lucky Couples They Married
 

Officiants are skilled at handling hecklers, and at staying calm and in character during unexpected interruptions and delays. 

 

And they’re often experts at blocking, pacing, and sharing the stage, in order to give the stars of the show (the couple getting married!) and the audience (the wedding guests!) the very best experience. 

 

Like actors, wedding officiants spend time before each ceremony familiarizing themselves with their script so that they’re comfortable with what to say and do the day of the wedding. They’re comfortable posing for photos, being captured on film, and dressing the part. 

 

And the best officiants are enthusiastic professionals when it’s time to slip into character – whether the character of the day is ‘Polished Minister,’ ‘Jedi Master,’ or ‘Respectful Zombie.’ 

 

(Left to right) Polished minister, AMM Minister Dan Henkel officiating a Star Wars theme wedding as a Jedi, and a groom and bride dressed as zombies for their The Walking Dead themed celebration

 

 

In fact, every officiant who’s performed a themed wedding will tell you that it’s a heck of a lot of fun to combine character acting with the rewarding service of marrying a couple in love! 

 

Of course, just like acting, officiating weddings isn’t all about stage time… A lot of work also goes into preparing for the day of the show – the wedding day. 

 

This behind-the-scenes work includes meeting with the nearlyweds, writing and revising a wedding script, rehearsing, traveling, and handling logistics and important documents, like the couple’s marriage license.

 

Serving as a wedding officiant is a little bit of acting, a little bit of improv, a little bit of directing… and a whole lot of fun!

If the role of wedding officiant sounds like a great match for your skills, follow the two steps below to get started: 

 

1. Get ordained. 

 

This step (minister ordination) qualifies you to legally perform weddings and sign a marriage license. 

 

• Get ordained online for free here with AMM 

 

Ordination is free online with American Marriage Ministries (AMM). We’re an inclusive, interfaith, non-profit church empowering people to officiate weddings for their friends, family, and community. It only takes a couple minutes to get ordained. 

 

• Read more about American Marriage Ministries here

 

 

2. In a few states, you’ll also need to register your ordination. 

 

• See states that require minister registration. 

 

 

Once you’re ordained, we’ll walk you through your new role of wedding officiant, give you some practice scripts, and get you ready to play your part!

 

 

• ...So What Does a Wedding Officiant Really Do?

 

• Free Wedding Ceremony Scripts for Officiants

 

• Wedding Officiant Training - Free Online Resource For New Officiants

 

 

So, what do you say?

 

It could be the role of a lifetime!

 

 

 

The wedding stage is calling!

 

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You might also like: 

 

 

• Calling All Wedding Content Creators: Get Ordained & Help Save the Wedding Day!

 

• Write a Wedding Ceremony Using a Classic Story Arc

 

• What to Pack in an Officiant’s Wedding Day Emergency Kit
   

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