Our heads are still spinning. We look back to March when weddings were still really just a concept – to now – when we’ve had weekend after weekend after weekend of ceremony, reception and party! Thinking back to the lovely lovely cool couples who have passed through our doors it is apparent that this venue caters for difference, alternative ideas and most definitely non-stuffy, non-corporate functions. Each couple has engineered their evening to suit their personalities. No-one has used the spaces in exactly the same manner; no-one has decorated anything remotely like the people before them; and certainly the dancing varies from event to event – from ostrich imitations to Tina Turner foot stomping.
Our first lovers will always be just that: our first. Dorothy and Josh brought Miss Jubilee back into the building and gave everyone a swing-time party. Anna and Bradley were our first to exchange vows down in the churchy Catacombs. Amanda and Dan danced on the stage under warm and alternating lights. Olga and Nate brought Russia and hard core partying into the Theater and, yes, their cake collapsed (not BCC’s doing – of course!) but they didn’t care because they were dancing and drinking and making magnificent mayhem. Sarah and Cam had beautiful vintage table settings, live vocal entertainment, and the most amazing dance idea – I can only describe it as colorful paper flowers that metamorphosed into cheer-leading pompoms that all the boys were only too happy to commandeer! Ryan and Marissa braved our hottest day yet to use the Theater as a dance floor and they left us with beautifully garlanded front steps that we couldn’t take down. Rachel and Krishna brought the color and flavor of India into the building. It was so haunting to hear the Indian chants upstairs on stage, playing through the speakers in the empty catacombs – absolutely other-worldy. And then the ceremony, the incense, the food – and the dancing! With beautiful decoration, Brooke and Jason did a head table up on the stage that was somehow medieval in concept and reminded observers of Game of Thrones – but G.O.T. with less violent outcomes! Jennifer and Tanner were the first to have a feast down in the Catacombs – and might I say – they switched their whole plan at the final walk through so that their original idea was completely discarded. Kellie and Ryan turned July into Christmas with the most complete, thorough and absolute decor make-over known to weddingdom. Emily and Corey, both Broadway roadies, came back home and found a bona-fide theater and stage to get married on – tailor made for them! Chanty and Clay brought sheer heaven into the Theater and Ballroom – theirs was sumptuous, with all those luxury details attended to – while the girls were completely comfortable in sneakers beneath their dresses! Annie and Dan… well… their party did not slow down the second it started. Brass bands, live bands, no permanent seating, cocktails and all the rooms used for different stages – the momentum just kept climaxing. And lastly – as this is written – Kimmy and Travis ceremonied down in the Catacombs, ate upstairs, then orchestrated a Catacomb flip into a post-dinner nightclub that turned into a true dance-fest.
All of these weddings have left their imprint on the place. It’s still a little eerie for us to see the bridal party leave at the end of the evening, having shared all the planning and lived much of the detail with them, to know that all of a sudden – it’s done! But we know they’ve taken the night with them – the experience – and they’ll have it forever, as will we. We regard these couples as the foundation of our house – seriously! And we’ve many more storeys to put on top of this – in fact – those new episodes in the life of the BCC are lined up and booked into 2017. Tomorrow evening it’s Michelle and Nick, and then Steph and John, and then… We call ourselves the Boo Cat Club and want to convey the idea that once you’re with us, you’re part of the club forever. We’ve got a few surprises in store to reinforce this that we can’t reveal yet – but watch this space. One thing we can announce is that we’re having a big party on Friday April 1, 2016, to invite all of our brides and their bridal party back for a celebration. That way they can meet other Boo Catters who have tied the knot but also have some fun with the same characters who helped launch them into married life, in the same venue where they had all that fun!
