Most people who book us for a company party have never seen a dueling piano show in person. They have heard it is fun, they have a room full of employees to entertain, and they are trusting us with the night. So here is exactly how a HiFi dueling piano show runs, from the moment we roll in to the last song.
Picture two pianists trading off songs, taking requests from the room and pulling your team into the show. One minute people are watching from their seats. The next they are singing along, clapping, sending up requests and talking about it at work on Monday. Dueling pianos is not live background music. It is an interactive show, and your room is part of it.
What happens when we load in?
We arrive about two hours before your doors open. Setup usually takes an hour and a half, and I build in the extra time so we are never rushing in front of your first guests.
Most of that time goes to placement and sound. The pianos need to sit where everybody can see them, because the show depends on the players and the audience being able to read each other. We run a sound check so the music fills your room without overpowering conversation at the back tables.
At some point we may ask to turn the house lights off for a few minutes so we can set our stage lighting and uplighting and get a feel for the room. It takes five minutes and you notice the difference once the show starts.
By the time your doors open, the setup should look clean, with as few cables in sight as we can manage. How we set up the room covers the stage size and table layout we work best with, which is worth reading before you finalize a floor plan with your venue.
Can we use your sound system for speeches and awards?
Yes, and most companies do. Once we are set, we will put on background music if you want it and show you the volume knob so your team can turn it up or down without coming to find us.
Our sound system and wireless microphones are yours for whatever the night needs. Welcome remarks, a thank you from leadership, service awards, a raffle drawing. If your program runs before our set, you are covered.
Where are you between setup and showtime?
Usually off site. There are often a couple of hours between your doors opening and our start time, and we would rather be out of your way than standing around in your event space.
We are back and ready 20 minutes before we are scheduled to play. If your program is running ahead, we can take the stage early. If it is running behind, we will wait. Neither one is a problem, and nobody on your team needs to track us down.
About five to ten minutes before we start, we put request slips and pencils on every table.
One small ask. Nobody needs to introduce us. If you have a speaker going straight into our set, all we need is for them to close with “HiFi Dueling Pianos will start in a few minutes.”
How does the show start?
We sit down, the stage lights come up, we hit a big chord and say hello.
The first minute is spent reading the room. We find out how familiar your group is with dueling pianos, explain how requests work, and set expectations for what is about to happen. Then we go.
The first few songs are chosen to be easy and heavy on participation while requests start coming in. During those first two to four songs our drummer is out in the room rather than behind the kit, walking the space and adjusting sound now that there are bodies in it. A full room sounds nothing like an empty one. After that he is behind the drums and the energy climbs.
Does everybody have to participate?
No. Participation is invited, never forced, and that matters more at a work event than anywhere else.
Some people want to be up front singing. Some want to watch from their table and laugh at the ones who got up. Both are fine, and we read the room the whole way through. If your group is not the type to come up on stage, we run the show differently. Nobody gets dragged into anything in front of their coworkers or their boss.
How do song requests work at a company party?
Your guests write down what they want to hear and set the slip on either piano. We are looking for upbeat songs most of the room will recognize, because the whole thing runs on people knowing the words.
From there we have plenty of ways to steer the night. We might bring a team up for a bit. We might run a battle between two sides of the room to see who sings louder, which lands especially well if your departments already enjoy beating each other. If it is somebody’s birthday, send them up and we will handle it.
How requests work gets into the mechanics in more detail, including how companies set the night up so their employees are never asked to pay anything at their own party.
Why does this work so well for a corporate crowd?
Because it solves the hardest part of a company party, which is getting people who only know each other from meetings to loosen up in the same room.
Live music, comedy and audience participation all happen at once, and we adapt in real time based on what your room gives us. A fixed set list cannot do that. Familiar songs do a lot of quiet work across an organization too. The 25 year old in accounting and the VP who has been there thirty years both know the chorus, and for three minutes that is the only thing in the room that matters.
It is also fair to ask what we will and will not play in front of your employees. Our show for a company event stays clean by default, and we have written about exactly where that line sits.
What do you need from our venue?
Room for two pianos, a drum kit and power, plus sight lines so your guests can actually see us. Our FAQ answers the specifics on space, show length and how booking works, and what changes as your headcount goes up is worth a look if you are expecting a large crowd.
We are based in Wichita and play company parties, holiday parties and fundraisers across Kansas, including Salina, Emporia, Hutchinson, Great Bend, Arkansas City and Kansas City.
Check your date
If you are weighing entertainment for a company party and want to know whether dueling pianos fits your room and your group, check your date and I will get back to you personally. Send me the date, the venue and roughly how many people you are expecting, and I will tell you honestly whether it is a good fit.