Revel Run weddings: venue guide and wedding DJ

Revel Run is a wedding and equestrian venue on South Dancer Road between Chelsea and Dexter, west of Ann Arbor. It sits on the rolling hills of a former golf course, with a pond at its centre, old trees on the lawns and a timber reception hall looking out over all of it.

Menzo Weddings provides wedding DJ and MC services at Revel Run, with live ceremony and cocktail-hour music to add if you want it. Dave Menzo, who founded Menzo Weddings, played Katie and Dennis's wedding here on September 6, 2026. This page covers what the venue offers, their day, and how we approach music for a wedding that starts by the pond and ends in a timber hall.

What is Revel Run like for a wedding?

The property was once a private golf course in Lima Township. Its clubhouse burned down in 2017, and Jim and Darlyn Daratony bought the land in 2019. The Daratonys had founded Cobblestone Farms in Dexter and have run equestrian competitions since 2003, and they built Revel Run as a family-owned equestrian estate and event venue. It held its grand opening in March 2024. The property covers about 150 acres and still hosts national eventing competitions alongside weddings.

Ceremony sites

All three ceremony sites are outdoors, with views of the pond:

• Promise Point at the Water's Edge: under a grand oak and a shagbark hickory.
• Fox Knoll: a raised site looking over the pond.
• Whispering Pines: reached by a paved path through a stand of pines.

The venue offers golf-cart rides for guests who need them, and if it rains, the ceremony moves into The Overlook.

The Overlook and the Foxhole

The Overlook is the reception hall, and every wedding uses it. It has vaulted timber beams, big windows, a built-in bar and a private deck, and it seats up to 220 for dinner. At that size, the venue notes, the dancing moves to the Foxhole.

The Foxhole is an optional biergarten with fireplaces, a fire pit and a full bar. The venue says most couples who add it use it for cocktail hour and again later in the evening. There's also a bridal suite and a groom's suite. See Revel Run's weddings page for current details.

Katie and Dennis's wedding at Revel Run

Katie and Dennis were married at Revel Run on a Sunday in September 2026, with a 4 pm ceremony. Rachel Mercer Photography's gallery shows a white-and-blue invitation, bridesmaids in dusty blue, Dennis in a navy suit and light-blue bow tie, groomsmen playing cornhole on the lawn outside the hall, and a first look under the old trees before portraits by the pond.

Wedding storyKatie & Dennis Revel Run, Chelsea · September 6, 2026See the wedding

From the couple

He was exceptional, from the live acoustic guitar at our ceremony, to singing and putting an amazing vibe on for our lawn cocktail hour, to MC-ing and making every aspect of our wedding dinner run like clockwork, and finally absolutely ROCKING the dance floor all night long. Dave is the end-to-end entertainment man.

Ceremony music by the pond at Revel Run

Revel Run says amplified sound is allowed at its ceremony sites. That matters outdoors. On an open lawn, sound doesn't bounce off anything, so our approach is to amplify even acoustic guitar and vocals a little, enough for the back rows to hear the processional and every word of the vows without it sounding loud at the front.

The three sites suggest different music, too. Whispering Pines has guests walking a path through the trees, which suits gentle prelude music as they arrive. Fox Knoll is raised, so the walk up is part of the moment, and the processional can be timed to it. Wherever you choose, we plan the processional to the length of the walk so the part of the song you love lands as you reach the front. Live ceremony music is an add-on to your DJ and MC booking. See live ceremony music.

Cocktail hour in the Foxhole

With fireplaces, a fire pit and a bar, the Foxhole suits a live acoustic set: guests stand around with a drink, the music is close by, and nobody has to raise their voice. If you're adding the Foxhole, it's a natural home for cocktail-hour music while you're out by the pond for portraits. See cocktail hour music.

Wedding DJ and MC in The Overlook

A timber hall with vaulted beams and a wall of windows feels warm before a single song is played. Our approach is to keep dinner music in the background while the light fades over the pond, then bring the energy up for the first dance and open dancing. See wedding DJ and MC.

The one thing to plan early is where the dance floor goes. At a smaller guest count it's in The Overlook. Near the hall's full seated capacity, the venue notes the dancing moves to the Foxhole, and that means planning when and how the party moves. As your MC, we announce it so the whole room follows. If you'd like the move to the dance floor to feel like the start of something, DJ plus live music adds live drums, guitar, sax or violin on top of the DJ set.

What to ask Revel Run before you plan the music

• Which ceremony site you're booking, and how far it is from The Overlook.
• What time music needs to end, within the midnight access window.
• Whether your guest count puts the dancing in The Overlook or the Foxhole.

When you check your date, tell us which site you're leaning toward and roughly how many guests you expect, and we'll plan the music around it.

More wedding venues near Chelsea and Ann Arbor

Dave has also played weddings at Stonebridge Golf Club on the south side of Ann Arbor and at Zingerman's Cornman Farms in Dexter, which closes at the end of October 2026. For more of the area, see Ann Arbor weddings, or browse all the venues we've played.