Anyone who has ever attempted to organize wedding seating arrangements knows just how complex the process can be. Now, imagine the monumental task of creating the seating chart for the Met Gala, one of the most prestigious and glamorous events in the fashion calendar. The team responsible for this critical aspect invests significant time and effort in strategically placing guests based on shared interests and connections, ensuring a seamless social experience at this high-profile gathering.

As Ward Durrett revealed in the documentary The First Monday in May, “A lot of thought goes into who sits next to who, whether they were seated together last year, or if they have a history of sitting beside each other at other events. The intricacies involved are astonishing,” highlighting the intense power dynamics at play in these arrangements. The seating chart not only dictates the physical arrangement but also the social interactions that unfold throughout the event.

Each year, the seating arrangements undergo numerous revisions as the event evolves, with Ward Durrett confessing to Vogue that she quickly learned to favor Velcro over traditional post-it notes to avert mistakes. “There have been countless iterations of the seating chart,” she explained. “When I first started, we relied on little stickies, and it was a complete disaster—things would fall off, guests would get lost, and we found ourselves rewriting names multiple times a day, which was incredibly frustrating.”

To enhance organization, color-coding plays a vital role in the seating strategy. Ward Durrett aims to follow a woman-man-woman-man pattern wherever feasible. An unexpected yet crucial guideline she follows is, “Never seat spouses next to each other.” This approach promotes interaction, encouraging guests to engage with new individuals and explore different conversations. After all, what is the point of attending such an impactful event if you end up just mingling with your spouse? Sorry, Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds!