Virtual Banquet Hall...

I've been working on a fun project this week, which entails creating a dance floor in the center of the ballroom. All the banquet tables, including the head table will complete surround the perimeter of the dance floor. As you can see from this virtual rendering I have quite a long way to go; however, I was excited as this was the first of several virtual rendering I will be producing for this upcoming wedding. I will hope subsequent renders of this project as I embellish them. I thought it may be cool if I take a snapshot of the actual ballroom on the day of the wedding, and do a side-by-side comparison.

Small Flourish, Big Impact....

As a mobile entertainer and wedding host, it has been my privilege to take part in a number of unforgettable weddings. One important fact that I have come to know in this industry is the smallest flourish can create the biggest impact. There have been several instances where friends or family members have approached me prior to the wedding date with a unique idea or special surprise. At one reception for instance, the bride’s brother was unable to make his sister’s wedding because he was stationed abroad, serving in the military. As a surprise, the bride’s parents and I arranged to have him call during the wedding so that we could broadcast him over the sound system. When it came time to toast the newlyweds, the bride’s brother was able to make a surprise debut (via an overseas call) to say a few special words to his little sister and her new husband. It was truly an unforgettable moment for both the wedding party and the guests. I don't believe there was a single dry eye in the room that night.

I will never forget another wedding in which I performed where we had a special moment of silence after the bride and groom's first dance. It served as a memorium to the father of the bride. You see, he passed away not long prior to his daughter's special day (a little over a year). As tradition would have it, the father is supposed to have his dance with his little girl immediately after the first dance. Instead, what the family decided to do was to honor his memory by having that moment of silence, along with a montage of streaming photos running on the two projection screens in the background. Although it was a sad moment, it had a positive outcome. The brothers of the bride (there were five) all stepped in and took turns having their dance with their sister, followed by the mother of the bride. They came together as one unit with incredible love and support from all the guests. Near the wedding cake, we kept a candle lit, the flame signifying his light present on that very special occassion.

Not all surprises are tear-jerkers though. On several occasions, the bride and groom have been surprised when their wedding party took the spotlight on the dancefloor to a choreographed musical number. In March of 2008, I made arrangements with a bride and groom to do the exact opposite. She was a banking manager, he an engineer. Albeit successful in their respective trades, the wedding party, nor the guests would have ever expected this professional couple to break out in a choreographed number three quarters of the way through their first dance. We set this up as a spoof making it seem that my CD player was skipping. The groom feigned anger as he started walking toward me. Even though I knew beforehand what was "really" taking place, I must admit it was a bit disconcerting for me to see this 6'6" man walking my way with an angry expression on his face. His performance was quite convincing! To my rescue, the song "I Can't Dance," by Genesis started playing and the bride and groom immediately began their choreographed number. When the audience realized what was happening, they went wild.!!! Everyone one was in hysterics (and I was relieved...).

The bottom line is creative input and imagination will get you everywhere. Do a little something different, what I call "that extra flourish," and I promise you that everyone will talk about your wedding celebration for years to come. A word of caution however. What may seem a spontaneous surprise will actually take a lot of rehearsal and practice to be effective. If you are planning on surprising your guests, or if you are a member of the wedding party and you want to surprise the bride and groom, make sure to assemble all members involved. Get them in-the-know well beforehand. More importantly, if a choreographed piece is what you'd like to do, make sure to plan, practice, and polish. It would be a great idea to employ the services of a professional dance instructor or choreographer to help. If you do a Google or YouTube search for "Surprising First Dances," you can see what some of these choreographed pieces look like. I have included a few of them below to check out. Good luck and remember keep it fun and practice, practice, practice....!

Wedding Party Dances to Michael Jackson's, "Thriller"

Another Michael Jackson surprise!

This is one of my favorites!!!

Check out this couple....Just found this one :-).

The iPod Wedding.....

I just came across this informative video put out by the American Disc Jockey Association (ADJA) that deals with those who are thinking about having an iPod Wedding. In today's financial climate, it is understandable that an engaged couple may want to cut down the overall cost of their wedding celebration. I truly believe that the one essential component, absolutely crucial for ensuring the success of any wedding celebration, is utilizing the services of a professional and experienced wedding entertainment host. This is a subject I feel strongly about, not just as a professional wedding entertainer myself, but as someone who has observed hundreds of weddings. I have been in the wedding industry for nearly two decades now, and have witnessed nearly every form of mishap imaginable, both first-hand and as an attendee.

I would like to invite you to take a look at the following video of an actual wedding reception that took place at what seems to be a private residence. For whatever reason, the bride and groom decided to utilize an iPod in lieu of a professional wedding host. The first half of the video highlights the wedding festivities, but the second half is more telling as it shows what really happened during those special moments like the formal introduction of the bride & groom, and their first dance together as husband & wife. After watching this video, I would also recommend reading a series of online articles written by a colleague, Peter Merry (former president of the ADJA). I've had the fortune of hearing Peter speak at a number of engagements and I consider him one of few true leaders in the wedding entertainment industry.

This video can be found at the ADJA's webite.

If you, or anyone you know has ever experienced an iPod Wedding firsthand, I would love to hear from you!

Weddings by Design...

One of the most valuable tools in an event designer's arsenal is, without a doubt, the use of C.A.D. (computer aided design) software. Within the entertainment industry, this type of software is commonly referred to as pre-visualisation software, or "pre-viz," and allows the set designer, concert promoter, and / or lighting designer to convey creative concepts onto a virtual platform. Once a venue is virtually constructed, a myriad of possibilities can begin to take shape. Staging can be configured, sets can be constructed, seating arrangements can be arranged, and lighting fixtures can be strategically placed without having to affect the actual venue.

Traditionally, C.A.D. software was reserved for architects, civil engineers and industrial drafting; however, as new innovations in design software have been made, prices have consistently dropped. C.A.D. software / hardware no longer cost tens of thousands of dollars, and greater accessibility has opened the doors to other subsidiary industries like the wedding market. The most exciting aspect of these emerging innovations is they are only beginning to hit the mainstream. Google entered into the arena of software design in 2000 with Google SketchUp , and since then several other C.A.D. companies have diversified their product lines to include event planners, concert designers, and wedding planners within their respective target markets. Although C.A.D. has been around for some time, pre-viz software is still in its infancy. Autodesk has created a program called LD Assist geared primarily toward the professional lighting designer. Vectorworks includes a program for designers aptly named Vectorworks Designer.

Example of a Vectorworks Set Design Render

Cast Software produces two C.A.D. platforms, W.Y.S.I.W.Y.G. (What You See is What You Get) and Vivien. Although the learning curve for these programs is still quite steep, the payoff for mastering these tools can prove to be quite rewarding. To give you an idea of what pre-viz software can actually do, I recommend visiting Valy Tremblay's website, Proluxon.com, and see what his team of designers have accomplished for artists like Nickelback and Sarah McLachlan.

Aside from being a small business owner, I am currently a Lighting Designer in training for a concert lighting and sound company based in Albuquerque, NM. I have had the fortune of working on site at several concerts this last year and have witnessed the benefits of utilizing pre-viz software firsthand. I was introduced to WYSIWYG a couple of years ago, and have been drawn into this virtual medium ever since.

Example of WYSIWYG Ballroom & Dancefloor Render

I have carried over my skill as a lighting designer into my wedding entertainment business and the response has been nothing less than remarkable. In the past, I could only offer my to-be brides hand-drawn sketches and diagrams of what their reception could potentially look like. With this new visual tool, I can garner my creative ideas and merge them with those of my client.... usually the bride. Then I take these ideas and create a virtual rendering of the banquet hall or ballroom. Not only are these renderings photorealistic, but they are to scale with the actual venue! This can be a godsend to a banquet manager, photographer, and event decorator. The bride and her family can get a preview of what the room will look like well before the big wedding day. I have included several of my own renderings, as well as renderings from the WYSIWYG website on my online gallery. I encourage to take a look for yourself at WeddingCelebrate.com. You'll find these renderings under the "design" tab of my main page. I would love to hear your comments and insights.