Katie and Ryan were the stars of their very own rock ‘n roll show at their amazingly creative and fun music inspired wedding at Mr. Smalls. These two groupies absolutely love going to concerts; in fact, they travel to a music festival every year. Inspired by this shared interest, Katie and Ryan aimed to recreate all of those good vibes on their big day. Coining the term “GreggFest” as the event’s official name, the couple went to town incorporating lots of musical inspiration into the affair.Of course, there was no venue better fit for the occasion than Mr. Smalls, a venue where Katie and Ryan have seen at least 20 shows. Custom wristbands, a “will call” seating chart, vinyl record centerpieces, tables named after bands, signs resembling concert posters, and even glow sticks as favors all helped to bring the vibe to life. A music inspired wedding just isn’t complete without a live performance though, right? After a DJ entertained from the cocktail hour through dinner, the Tim Vitullo Band took over and played jams into the wee hours of the morning. It even looks like there was some crowd surfing by the groom! Outside the box and completely “them,” GreggFest seemed like a total blast! Enjoy these photos of the epic party from Ryan Zarichnak Photography.
About the Couple
Ryan and I met at the Library Bar in Southside while I was a student at Pitt. We dated for five years before we got engaged in 2016. We’re huge music fans and typically go to a music festival at least once a year. In 2016, we decided to go to Jazz Fest in New Orleans. We had a full day in New Orleans before Jazz Fest started and Ryan planned the whole day for us. We had a late lunch at Toup’s Meatery, who is owned by Issac Toups (a finalist on Top Chef, one of our favorite shows). After lunch, Ryan rented a gondola ride in the city park and proposed on the ride! Afterwards, we had a concert that night to see one of our favorite bands. It was absolutely perfect and we were able to celebrate the whole weekend!
About the Wedding
Since we’re music lovers, we wanted our wedding to have good vibes all night long and to feel like a music festival. We’ve been to at least 20 shows at Mr. Smalls (Ryan even told me he wanted to marry me during a concert there.). We had bands as table numbers, vinyl records as center pieces, and festival wristbands and glow sticks as favors. It was an absolute dream to have GreggFest at Mr. Smalls.
My best friend and bridesmaid, Stacy, designed our save the dates, invitations, table numbers, and signage throughout the venue. Along with all my amazing vendors, she made our wedding vision become a reality.
We had both a DJ and a band. Sam Crawford played from cocktail hour through 11 p.m. He completely packed the dance floor with today’s hits and the best boy band jams. No one could sit down, including my grandma! Then, the Tim Vitullo Band took the stage and rocked until 12:30 a.m. We discovered them at the the local Deutschtown Music Festival and immediately knew we had to have them at our wedding. The whole set list was amazing – from the Allman Brothers to Gary Clark Jr. and of course the band’s original songs.
Favorite Moment
We were so happy and the whole day was filled with amazing moments. If I have to pick one, I would say when we were introduced into the reception and came out on stage. It was absolutely incredible to see everyone we loved in one room, while feeling like rockstars 🙂
