Charity Gala Run of Show Builder

A gala is a fundraising machine dressed as a dinner, and the order of the programme decides how much it raises. Set your doors time, dinner style, and auction lots, and the builder produces a cue-by-cue run of show with the ask placed where it works.

Doors openWhen guests arrive for the reception. Setup and rehearsal run backward from it.DinnerLive auction lots (lots)About four minutes a lot, including the auctioneer’s build-up.

Charity Gala Run of Show Builder
13:55		min
16:55	Rehearse the three cues that raise the money: the video, the auctioneer’s walk-on, and the paddle raise. If the video and the ask are not rehearsed back to back, they will not land back to back.	min
17:40		min
18:00	The silent auction does its best work now, while people have a drink in hand and time to browse. Put the most tempting lots nearest the bar.	min
19:00	Announce fifteen- and five-minute warnings, then close before guests sit down, so volunteers can tally winners during dinner rather than at the end of the night.	min
19:05		min
19:20		min
19:28		min
20:43	Open with a strong lot to set the room’s pace and keep the best for second-to-last. Past about ten lots, attention drops faster than the bids rise.	min
21:20		min
21:28	Straight after the story, while the room is still moved — never after the band starts. The gap between the video ending and the ask beginning should be seconds, not minutes.	min
21:43	Announce what the room raised before people leave. Guests who hear the total feel part of it, and they are more likely to come back next year.	min
21:50		min
22:50	The checkout queue is the last impression of the night. Let winners pay at the table during dessert, or by phone, so nobody waits in line on the way out.	min

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The order of the programme decides what the night raises

A gala’s budget goes on the dinner, but its money is made in about forty minutes of programme — the live auction, the story, and the ask. The order of those three matters more than the menu, the décor, or the band. The sequence this builder uses is the one experienced auctioneers keep returning to: the live auction first, while the room is lively and competitive; then the mission video or beneficiary story; then the paddle raise immediately afterward, while people are still moved. The auction warms the room up to spending, and the story gives them a reason to give more. Swap the order and the emotional high point arrives while nobody is being asked for anything.

Never leave a gap between the story and the ask

The paddle raise works because of what happens in the minute before it. A well-made video, or a beneficiary describing what the charity did for them, leaves the room quiet and receptive. If the MC then fills three minutes with housekeeping, or dessert starts coming out, or the band begins a sound check, that moment is gone and it does not come back. Rehearse the video and the ask back to back in the afternoon run-through, have the auctioneer or chair standing ready as the video ends, and keep the paddle raise as the very next item on the run of show. Seconds between them, not minutes.

Size the live auction to the room, not the lot list

Donors are generous with auction lots, and it is tempting to sell all of them live. But a live auction has a natural length, and it is shorter than most committees hope. Allow about four minutes a lot including the auctioneer’s build-up; at eight lots that is over half an hour, and past ten the room’s attention falls away faster than the bids climb. Move the rest into the silent auction, where they do well during the reception. Open the live auction with a strong lot to set the pace and keep the best for second-to-last, so the programme builds rather than peaking early. The builder sizes this block from your lot count so you can see the trade-off.

Prefer a written guide?

This builder generates a live schedule you can edit and print. For worked examples with downloadable PDF & Word templates, read the guides:

Common questions

What is the order of events at a charity gala?

A typical gala runs: reception and silent auction, guests seated, welcome, dinner, live auction, mission video or story, paddle raise, thank-yous with the total raised, then entertainment and auction checkout. The live auction, story, and paddle raise are the fundraising core, and their order matters most.

When should the paddle raise happen?

Immediately after the mission video or beneficiary story, while the room is still moved. A gap for housekeeping, dessert service, or entertainment loses the moment. It should come before the band starts, never after.

How many live auction lots should a gala have?

Around six to ten. Allow about four minutes a lot; beyond ten, attention drops faster than bids rise. Move the rest into the silent auction.

Is this gala run of show builder free?

Yes — build, edit, and print your run of show with no signup. Open it in Chronolio to share it with the MC, auctioneer, AV team, and volunteers so everyone runs from the same cues.

Chronolio for Fundraisers & Galas →Nonprofit templates →

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