Alex and Deren's The Dana on Mission Bay's Wedding
First of all, I would like to thank Heather Willmus from Willmus Weddings for introducing me to Alex and Deren. Heather referred me to Alex and we scheduled a Facetime meeting. Before I knew it I was Alex and Deren’s San Diego Wedding DJ. The couple wanted to have a chill, party vibe for the both cocktail and dinner hour and a mixture of Salsa, Merengue, Bachata, Hip Hop, and R&B for dancing and fun at the reception.
I was excited to hear that Alex and Deren’s wedding was at The Dana on Mission Bay wedding venue. I have worked at this wedding venue on several occasions and I was excited to return for such a fun wedding. I’ve always loved the way this venue overlooks the bay, especially during sunset. I appreciate Heather Willmus and her dedicated team for making sure I had everything I needed to successfully MC the ceremony and reception.
Alex and Deren’s ceremony was in the garden area of the resort which was absolutely beautiful. The Garden was decorated with colorful flowers and the tables were covered in pink and gold. The bride and groom had asked a close friend to officiate. Unfortunately she had lost her voice a few days prior of the wedding. I made sure the wireless microphone was adjusted perfectly so she was able to project her voice clearly for all the guests.
After the ceremony, I set a chill vibe with a bit of indie-rock while the guests hung out and mingled. Entertainment included games set up on the lawn which was a great idea because there were a lot of young families in this group. While Alex and Deren were off with the talented, Christophe WIllmus, taking beautiful photos on the bay, I joined in a game of giant jenga and cornhole with some of the families.
When Alex and Deren were done taking photos, I welcomed the newlyweds back into the garden area for dinner with their guests and to listen to some heartfelt speeches from their closest friends and family. It was a joy to see how much love and support this couple has.
With emotions high, I knew it was time to bring the party back to life and get people dancing. The best way to do this is with my signature dance-off, the “Battle of the Decades”. Five unsuspecting couples were picked by our bride and groom to put on their best performance. The teams had a great time busting out their decade specific moves to try and win over the crowd, and more importantly, the prized liquor bottle. I was happy to see our vocally impaired officiant win the game! She was a true champ.
I then called everyone to the dance floor to join our couple and to get the dancing started. With the party in full effect, Tina of Tina Q Photography opened up my photo booth for and extra bit of fun. I announced its opening and tons of guests flocked to it to grab a memorable photo. I had personalized our couple’s photo strip with pink and gold to match their decor. We had a cork board set up for people to leave a photo strip for the bride and groom along with a sweet note.
The dancing lasted until it was time to go home. By the end of the night, friends and family were all hugging and laughing and saying what an amazing time they had. As everyone was leaving, I was able to catch our dance-off winners sharing their prize liquor with everyone else at their table including the bride and groom!
A big special thank you to Willmus Weddings; Heather our coordinator, Chris our photographer and videographer. Thank you as well to Tina of Tina Q Photography for assisting me and managing the photobooth and the staff of The Dana at Mission Bay. Lastly, a big thank you to Alex and Deren for entrusting me with their wedding.
