Reception Entertainment Director

By: Eva Torres-Luciano, Owner of Eva’s Weddings Congratulations on your decision to get married! When couples are looking to hire a professional wedding officiant, for example, they may find that our pricing may be higher than the quotes given to them by other amateurs or less experienced officiants. Why? Experience and know-how = overall superior outcome and satisfaction. Couples must also take into account the Officiant’s area of expertise, years of experience, and value to them. For example, expertise in bilingual bicultural, rituals, traditions, unity ceremony weddings. You will be doing yourself, your wedding and the Officiant an injustice by focusing on price as a starting point. Hiring a professional is a great investment for your marriage. Your fears and nerves will be less, which is PRICELESS! Why higher prices? From an Officiant’s perspective, there’s a lot of time spent and expenses incurred behind the scenes while working for you in order to create a unique, m...

One of our favorite officiants is Mary Coburn.  We recently provided sound reinforcement for a classic duo and microphones for the ceremony of Emily and David at the Deep River Landing.  Mary did an outstanding service that was not only personalized but uplifting to all the guests attending….not to mention she’s great on the microphone and wonderfully well organized! If your looking for an officiant for your wedding ceremony we would highly recommend Mary Coburn, who is a professionally trained Lifecycle Celebrant ™, having studied the art of ceremony and ritual through the Celebrant Foundation and Institute. Here are some tips for couples when thinking about their wedding ceremony: Realize that the ceremony is the heart of the wedding day, therefore, it is worth your effort to find an officiant who will provide a personalized ceremony that celebrates you and your story! The tone of your wedding ceremony sets the tone for your entire wedding day, so ch...

We recently worked two very different outdoor wedding ceremonies with a wonderful and experienced officiant, Deborah O. Stiewing, J.P: Deborah been a Justice of the Peace since 1981 and has performed more than 1400 ceremonies.  She has a variety of verses prepared however Deborah encourage individual input to create a special celebration for a more memorable wedding, civil union, commitment ceremony or for those who wish to renew their wedding vows.    You will receive the same commitment to your consultation & wedding whether you are having a private ceremony or one that requires a guest list of two…to two-hundred!  Deborah will discuss the type of ceremony you desire, the personal writing of your service, editing and preparing your vows and the addition of a religious blessing if requested.   Deborah will address any concerns that you have and will offer you a variety of pleasant and reliable solutions. For more deta...

  Selecting your Officiant for wedding ceremony is one of the most difficult tasks that most prospective Bride and Grooms need to do before their wedding day. We recommend just a few Officiant's with whom we've worked with before.  Not all Officiants understand the concept of public speaking, working with sound equipment and other vendors, to make the Bride and Grooms ceremony something unique and special. In a first of our series of interviews with Officiants, we asked Rev. Dr. Robert Henderson some important questions: 1) Do we have a choice between a standard ceremony and a ceremony that we collaborate with you in creating? "I believe the wedding ceremony belongs to the bride and groom. It is fine if they prefer not to be involved in deciding on their ceremony; although I prefer to collaborate with the couple in creating a personal and unique ceremony that reflects who they are." 2) How long do you believe a ceremony should last? "I do not bel...

The Bond Ballroom in Hartford is one of our favorite facilities.  With the view eleven floors up, overlooking Bushnell Park and downtown Hartford, it's huge dance floor and the crystal chandelier as the centerpiece, this room is a classic example of 1920's style and grandeur.  Taking care of all the details is Joe Howard, Elli, Cathy and the rest of the great staff. This is the location that Sarah and Mark chose for their Ceremony and Reception.  This was also the same day as the St. Patrick's Day Parade in Downtown Hartford . The sun was shining and eyes were smiling as our Justice of the Peace, Sal J. Fiore officiated a beautiful indoor ceremony. Cocktail Hour followed for the guests whilst Sarah, Mark and family members took formal pictures with Brooke Sforza and her staff from Brooke Allison Photography , who worked quickly and smoothly to get all the pictures before dinner. For the introduction of the Bridal Party and parents, we used the grand staircase, with...

Halloween weddings are always great fun to perform.... playing loads of songs that we don't get chance to play at any other time during the year. Marisa and Chris selected Saint Clements Castle , which fit perfectly for their Halloween masquerade ball themed reception.  This was also the same setting for the Ceremony with the beautiful fall colors as a backdrop.  The Groom and Groomsmen all looked fantastic in elegant gothic style jackets and the Bridesmaids in traditional attire.... the Bride wore white. Our good friend and our routinely recommended officiant Rev. Dr. Robert Henderson presided over the Ceremony whilst Atmosphere Productions String Musicians Amanda and Nancy provided Violin and Cello for the Ceremony and Cocktail Hour. Atmosphere Productions specializes in working with our clients, if they want to pick all the music, to get the best mix and create the right flow.  The Bride & Groom and family members selected all the music for the reception....

Outdoor ceremonies are inherently difficult events to pull off successfully.   Location, noise and Mother Nature are just a few things that come to mind that are totally uncontrollable.  But, when you have an officiant who is knowledgeable, works incredibly well with event coordinators, family members and the Bride & Groom, then your chances of success are that much greater - Rev. Dr. Robert Henderson is such an officiant. Rev. Dr. Robert Henderson is an Ordained Protestant Minister with 41 years of experience, who performs wedding ceremonies throughout Connecticut.  He officiates Interfaith Ceremonies, Single Religion Ceremonies, Same-Sex Ceremonies and Non-Denomination Ceremonies. We highly recommend Rev. Dr. Robert Henderson and the many ceremonies that he has worked with Atmosphere Productions we have found him to be prompt, timely, knowledgeable about protocols relating to microphones and sound, and above all showed a natural affection for what he was d...