KU vs. MU
As we all know, here in Kansas City there is a little bit of a rivalry between KU fans and MU fans. What would happen if a gorgeous, sweet little KU girl were to meet a Big Bad MU man and get married? What would the reception be like with such rivalry? “A Blast… full of Energy” as one guest described it.
On August 16th James Gaona (Encore EE Emcee) broke the Ice with a warm “Let me hear you, if you are ready to meet the new Mr. & Mrs. Forck” The guests clapped and showed a little enthusiasm. James then mentioned that there might be a little tension in the room with so many KU fans sitting so close to the MU fans. He then asked for all the KU fans to make a little noise, The KU Fans erupted in cheers and applause. “Now, let me hear all of the MU Fans”. The MU Fans clapped and whistled trying their best to out do the KU fans. Then James asked for THE Corn Husker fan to make some noise! A single man stood up from his chair, clapped and hollered alone among all these KU and MU fans. The guests helped him out with some applause and laughter. All the energy in the room was amazing, you could feel it tingling on your skin. Now that the crowd was more than primed with enthusiasm, here came the wedding party. As each Bridesmaid and Groomsman were announced they came through the door dancing, smiling and encouraging the crowd for more applause. Just when we thought there couldn’t possibly be a higher level of enthusiasm, here came the Bride and Groom. Not only were the Bride and Groom excited to dance into the room, they couldn’t wait to hear the response of the crowd as they carried their MU/KU flag high above their heads. Wow! The crowd was even louder clapping, whistling, dancing, and laughing, as the Bride and Groom represented both sides of the rivalry smiling ear to ear. All the action was caught flawlessly by Gary Gibbons of Gibbons Video Productions
Continuing with the MU & KU rivalry James decided that we could personalize the money dance and make it even more fun than normal. Instead of having a money pouch for the Bride (usually a white satin bag) and a money pouch for the Groom (usually a black satin bag), James had a KU bag for the Bride and a MU bag for the Groom. Each guest was asked to put their dance money in the bag for KU if they were a KU fan and dance money in the MU bag if they were a MU fan. This became an event to show school spirit and appreciation for the Bride and Groom. During the money dance, the bride would yell out, “come on KU, don’t let me down” and the Groom would respond with an MU chant calling on the MU fans to make sure they won the competition. The guests loved it, and all of them showed their school colors as they approached the dance floor to dance with the Bride or the Groom. When the results of the competition came in James cleared the dance floor and all the guests were silent waiting to hear who the TRUE fans were. James announced and our winner by a margin of $38 is….. The Tigers! Just as he finished the word the MU Fight song played through the sound system and the crowd erupted in applause. As a side note: Even though the Jayhawks had the homefield advantage with the reception held at the Holiday Inn Holidome in Lawrence, KS The Tigers took the victory by a small margin.
So, when you combine some strong KU-MU Rivalry in marriage, you get a great party, lots of enthusiasm and never a dull moment.
Warning! Don’t try this with just any rivalry. The guests were interviewed before the event and asked not to bring any Live Tigers or Jayhawks to the event. No animals were harmed in the uniting of these two fans. Professional security was on site to ensure a safe event for all Fans involved.
Nick & Rachel Ong
Nick & Rachel had their reception this past weekend at one of my absolute favorite locations the Loose Mansion . Nick & Rachel were so much fun they seemed to always have a smile on their face and a big hug for everyone. The tables were decorated wonderfully with Orange (a favorite of Rachel’s) and they were also numbered. Along with the numbers were little trivia questions about Nick & Rachel with the answers on the back. This was a great idea. It got the tables all talking and having a good time sharing their own stories about the happy couple.
Nick was such a gentleman the whole night. When Nick & Rachel started their first dance, Nick presented Rachel with a single red rose. Jeremy & Ashley Parsons were the photographers for Nick & Rachel visit their blog and see some of the amazing photos that were taken.
During the night, I always check with my Bride and Groom to see how things are going and if there is anything that I can do for them. It was getting late and as I made my last rounds for the night I asked Nick if there was anything I could do for him. He said everything was great but he wanted to know if he could hear “Piano Man” by Billy Joel. When I met with Nick and Rachel to plan their reception, that was his single song request for the night. I had that in my planner and was holding on to it for the right time of the night. The dance floor was full and there were about 25 guests seated at the tables. So I walked out to the tables and asked that everyone seated take a hold of their drink on the table in front of them and raise it above their head. Then I asked them to stand and follow me. I took them to the dance floor to join the others. When they were all there, I said this is a song that we all know and is special to Nick so let’s sing along. I then played “Piano Man” and all the guests gathered around Nick & Rachel and sang. The best memory I will carry with me forever of Nick & Rachel is the huge smile Nick had on his face as they all stood with their arms around each others shoulders and sang Nick’s Song with him.
One of the Best in KC
I had the opportunity to be a part of Grant & Emily Karr’s reception on 8/9/08 at the Hilton President downtown KC. Emily and Melanie (Emily’s mom) were the two I meet with to plan their reception. Grant is a proud member of our great nations military and was unable to attend our planning meetings. In these meetings it was clear that they did not want the standard songs you may hear at a reception and they wanted to make sure every guest felt apart of their special day. That night was wonderful and the President as usual looked fabulous. I have the chance to hear many toasts and many are outstanding. I was lucky to hear a toast given by Grant’s Best Man that was so heart felt that it brought me to tears. I saw first hand the brotherhood of the military shine through the toast. Every man and woman there was jealous of the friendship. It was followed by a great night of dancing and not a single cliche song was played. We went late into the night ending at 1am and the crowd was yelling for more. Grant and Emily have a great life ahead of them and an exceptional group of family and friends to share it with.
Family Traditions and a Great Party
In my 12 years of wedding entertainment, I have seen many family traditions. Some really sentimental, a few on the weird side, and some national traditions that are tailored to the family. Many Brides and Grooms may already be familiar with the Grand Cake March or Grand March. In all my years, not one family has performed the Grand cake march the same as any other. This seems to be one of those traditions that is tailored by the family over many generations. But by far, the Grand Cake March from the Mangino family has got to be the best yet. A key to this tradition is having a family member lead the march who really knows what he/she is doing. In the case of the Mangino family, Grandmother Connie was very excited to lead the Grand Cake March for Tommy and Danielle, as she has done for so many other weddings in her family. Like the pro that she is, she led the cake march around the dance floor making different patterns with the lines. She led the couples’ line into single file, making circles that surrounded the bride and then surrounded the groom, honoring them separately and then honoring their new union together. Hearing the crowd join in clapping to the music, laughing and enjoying the traditional march made us all feel like we were a part of the family. A favorite of this crowd was leading the family in a single file line around the tables parading through the reception, as the parade passed each table you could see the guests smile and cheer the wedding party on with clapping. Another great touch that the Mangino family used is a change in the music from “When the Saints Go Marching in” to “Here Comes the Bride” as Tommy and Danielle walked through a canopy of arms from the participating wedding party and family. The Canopy of arms leads the Bride and Groom to the Cake table, where they share the traditional first piece of cake.
From the entrance announcement to the traditional Cake March and the final dance, this crowd was a lot of fun. The night was truly a celebration for Tommy and Danielle’s new union. To end the evening we had all of the guests line up just outside the entrance to the building ready to see the newly weds off. Just as the couple exited the building smiling ear to ear in anticipation to the new adventures ahead, BAM! Fireworks lit up the sky! The surprise rushed through the crowd with excited Ooooo and Ahhhhhh’s. Wow, what a fantastic ending to a magical day!
“My Grandmother was so Honored, Thank you”
Just last night at David and Kristan’s wedding (Loose Mansion) we had a chance to really customize a traditional wedding event that many people see as a standard event with little opportunity to personalize. David and Kristan started out their wedding reception with a grand entrance coming down the gorgeous staircase in Loose Mansion. Starting out the entrance announcement by introducing all of the bridesmaids first to “Oh, Pretty Woman”. As each of the bridesmaids were announced they gracefully descended the staircase and stood picturesque on the staircase to the left. We then mixed in the song “These are my people” for the Groomsmen to enter and stand on the opposite side of the staircase as the women. Now that we had all of their closest friends poised on the staircase, it was time to introduce the Bride and Groom. As they entered to their song “It, Had to be you” by Harry Connick Jr. the very dramatic intro to the song matched their Grand entrance down the large staircase with all their friends standing ready on each side of the staircase. David and Kristan paused as the flashes from the cameras popped, immediately moving to the cake cutting, which was located at the bottom of the staircase.
The backdrop for the cake cutting not only included the gorgeous setting at Loose Mansion, but also included their close friends standing behind them all neatly ordered. The cake cutting was very elegant as they shared the traditional poses and feeding of the first piece of cake. David and Kristan have a set of grandparents that just happened to be sharing their 50th wedding anniversary this same evening. Since, 50 years is so un-common these days, we didn’t want this special occasion to go unnoticed. After David and Kristan finished their cake cutting ceremony, Encore Elite Entertainment announced that we had another couple to honor this evening. We then introduced their grandparents, explained that they were sharing their 50th anniversary, and had them stand next to the newly wedded couple. Just as David and Kristan finished sharing the first piece of wedding cakes the grandparents shared the same ceremonial cake cutting and feeding of the cake. The Grandparents were photographed just as if this was their wedding taking place all over again. Wow, the pictures they will have to remember this event are amazing. David and Kristan’s grandparents being honored at their wedding, the gorgeous setting at Loose Mansion, friends that have been with them for many years in the background, and a grandmother tearing up with pride, love and honor!
A First Dance That Brought Them To Their Feet
I had the chance to work with Justin & Sara on their reception at Lake Quivera. They as many others are Youtube fans and had watched a few first dances so they had an idea of their own. They wanted to put together a surprise for the guest and choreograph their first dance using a montage of songs. We started with a beautiful slow song “Feels Like Home” by Chantal Kreviazuk then after every one has fallen completely into the romatic moment the song started to skip, the guests were horrified as they feared the memories that Sara & Justin would have from this mistake. Just then we mixed in their surprise “Jump on it” then into “The Hokey Pokey” then “YMCA” then “Thriller” then “Macarena” Then “Can’t Touch This” and finishing with the end of their original song “Feels Like Home”. The Guests erupted with applause and circled the dance floor when they realized that it was planned. What an exciting evening to remember for many years to come. Thank you Justin and Sara.
The New Website Is LIVE!
Finally after many months of work on the new website, EncoreEE.com is LIVE! We are very excited about the new look and feel of our new website. The Staff here at Encore has worked hard to develop a website that is informative to our potential clients and appealing in design. But, My warmest thanks is for the pictures that were provided by our friends at Peters Photography and Phoenix Photography. Although, this may have been the hardest part of the website. Both Photographers had sooooo many great photos to choose from. There were many nights debating among Encore Staff which pictures to use. The pictures that we used on our website are just a small taste of their real talent in making any bride and groom look fabulously in love.
Thank You Rebecca Haas – aka Peters Photography
Thank You John and Lisa – aka Phoenix Photography
There are still a few more features to come to the website. Hopefully they will be completed by the end of the week.
I look forward to hearing the responses from our brides on the new website. This new site is a great representation of quality and care that you can expect from Encore Elite Entertainment.
The Knot "Best of 2008"
Encore Elite Entertainment (Encore DJ Services) has been recognized by The Knot for being the Best Of 2008 in Kansas City.
Working on the New Website
Encore Elite Entertainment is working on building a new website. The previous website is/was encoredj.com. Encore has grown professionally and personally to expand our services far beyond the typical DJ. When we first started our company over 3 years ago, we were great DJ’s with over 10 years experience. Our focus was on music and following the instructions given to us by the bride and anyone else in charge. Over the years we noticed that some receptions were great and some were a little slow moving. A little at a time we began taking the planning portion with the Bride to deeper and deeper levels of detail. Wow, what a difference that makes. In the past two years we have visited many Emcee seminars and various training classes to improve upon our natural abilities to lead. No longer is “Encore DJ Services” a name that fully describes our business focus. We have chosen “Encore Elite Entertainment” to represent what our company is about. With our new name we are improving our web presence with http://www.encoreee.com/ (currently under construction).
Encore Elite Entertainment is a full service Entertainment Director service. We provide our clients with a detailed planning session to discover their personalities and the vision they have for their event. By combining our clients vision and our experience Encore Elite Entertainment provides our clients with a momentous reception.
This blog is our first venture into the Blog world. I look forward to posting our success stories, insight into what makes an event a Encore event, and lots of other interesting/fun stories.
I will keep information flowing as our new website comes to life.
Thank You Notes For Encore Elite Emcees/DJs
Encore DJ,
We just wanted to thank you for making our wedding day so memorable on August 12, 2006. Ryan was our DJ and he did a wonderful job of keeping everything running smoothly, not rushing us, and allowing us time to enjoy the night. He also brought and extra DJ who spoke Spanish, which really showed us he cared about making our night special. We could not have picked a more professional or caring company to do buisness with. We would definitely use you again for future events and would recommend you to others. Thank you so much for making our wedding so much fun with the wonderful music.
Thank you,
Mike and Andrea Rosewell
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