On Saturday we were at Highfield Hall in Butler Pennsylvania. The event was a wedding ceremony and wedding reception for Joseph & Virginia Donovan. Virginia & Joe have previously been to a couple of weddings where I was the Disc jockey. Most recently was the wedding reception for Chris & Jen Balldacci. I was very excited when Virginia and Joe contacted me, because I knew right away that this was not going to be your typical wedding ceremony & reception.
For starters, Virginia & Joe chose Halloween as the date to get married. In addition to the wedding reception, Virginia & Joe decided to hold their wedding ceremony at Highfield Hall also. And in keeping with the holiday tradition, they opted to have a costume wedding. This meant that all of the guests were encouraged to dress up in Halloween costumes for both the wedding ceremony and wedding reception.
We originally planned on taking photographs of the guests, outdoors as they arrived in costume. However, the weather on Saturday did not cooperate. So, I phoned our good friend Bob Mason from Robert Mason Photography, who graciously loaned us a muslin photography backdrop. This allowed us to setup a makeshift photography studio in the side room at Highfield Hall.
Guests began arriving at Highfield Hall shortly before 4:30 pm as we played prelude music. The wedding ceremony started at 5:00 pm with the procession of the bridesmaids to “Hybrid Moments” by Switchyard. Virginia then chose “Take Your Bow” by Apocalypse Hoboken for her processional. The wedding ceremony was performed by Reverend Mark DeNuzio of A Simple Vow and lasted approximately 20 minutes.
After the ceremony, guests enjoyed cocktails and appetizers as the bridal party posed for formal photographs. We also used this time to take pictures of all of the guests in costume.
At 6:15 pm we introduced the bridal party to the song “The Imperial March” by John Williams. Next, we introduced Virginia & Joe to “This Is Halloween” by The Citizens Of Halloween. After the introductions, Virginia & Joe cut the wedding cake to “When I’m Sixty Four” by The Beatles.
Dinner was prepared by the catering staff at Highfield Hall and was served buffet style. After Dinner, Virginia & Joe shared in their first dance together as husband and wife to “That’s How Strong My Love Is” by Otis Redding. They then danced with the bridal party to “Swing Life Away” by Rise Against. Next, Virginia requested a special dance with her father James Tincani to “Kind And Generous” by Natalie Merchant and Joe danced with his mother Joanne Donovan to “God Only Knows” by The Beach Boys.
Throughout the remainder of the evening, guests danced to songs such as “Thriller” by Michael Jackson, “Louie Louie” by The Kingsmen, “Monster Mash” by Bobby Boris Pickett and “Time Warp” from Rocky Horror Picture Show.
The wedding reception ended at 11:00 pm as we invited all of the guests to share in the last dance of the evening to “Little Red Riding Hood” by Sam The Sham & The Pharos.
