TRADITIONAL AND UNIQUE EVENTS
As a woman who came from a traditional background but has always danced to the beat of my own drum, I recognize the challenges that planning an event bring up. I strongly value tradition; there is much to be said and respected about rituals and processes that mark milestone moments standing the test of time, which is thousands of years in many cases.
And yet. My clients do not want to have cookie cutter events; they want their guests to feel a difference between their event and an event of the same type they attended last month. They want their events to be memorable. They do not want to follow a script; they don’t follow scripts in their lives or careers, and they certainly don’t want to follow one for a special occasion.
How do you bridge tradition with individuality while not watering down either one? For me, this means working with my clients to intentionally select traditional components to incorporate, leave out customs that go against their values, and offer a brand new ritual for guests to experience and witness for the first time.
While corporate events certainly have their own scripts, it is weddings that wrestle with tradition the most. Wedding traditions include religious and ethnic rituals that have been practiced for thousands of years. In some cases, a marriage may not be recognized by a religious institution at all if certain elements are excluded or altered. I have experienced and planned enough events by now to have (almost) seen it all. A Jewish wedding where a couple opted to sign a Ketubah (Jewish marriage contract), but did away with other traditions, such as the bride circling the groom seven times during the ceremony. Or a bride deciding to walk down the aisle solo, rather than have a parent (or two) walk her down.
My job as an event planner is to listen to my clients’ values and to work with them to design an experience that honors the traditions they hold dear while being a reflection of them. I have always found a third option for the situations that seem dead-end. While my clients may have different visions for their events than, say, their parents, I have found that when all parties are open to finding a solution that ultimately honors the guests of honor rather than imposing their own assumptions on the situation, we can make magic. Beautiful, never-been-done-before, traditional yet reflective magic.
