Joyz & Yoichi’s surrealistic multicultural performance wedding

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The offbeat bride: Joyz

Her offbeat partner: Yoichi

Date and location of wedding: Alila Villas Uluwatu, Bali, Indonesia — July 23, 2011

What made our wedding offbeat: Nobody gave me away. Instead, I walked down the aisle together with Yoichi. It symbolized the fact that I'm my own woman and not anyone else's property, and that Yoichi and I mutually decided to enter the new stage of our lives, and from then on, walk through our lives together. We also cut our cake with a 30-pound sword.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/68300221@N05/6215322790/

the musical005

chinese dance + rock music

It was more of an art showcase/dinner theater production than a wedding. All of our guests were constantly surrounded by the 75 dancers, body builders, stilt walkers (in studded leather thongs), and actors who stayed in their characters for the whole duration of the party.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/68300221@N05/6214722157/

We were very much a part of the entertainment as well, which was comprised of a two-hour musical (which I wrote and directed) and fire show which we co-produced with James and Deva Harris from Orange Production Bali.

procession005

no one gave me away. instead, my (now) husband and I entered the 'chapel' together

Tell us about the ceremony: Instead of entering the reception area with flower girls, bridesmaids, groomsmen, and family members, we were accompanied by eight tall and muscular men in black suits who pretended to be our bodyguards. The Christian/religious ceremony was done inside of the hotel's wine room. We also had a non-traditional Chinese tea ceremony and served the tea in shot glasses. A group of traditional Irish fiddlers were playing Irish folk music in the background.

Tea Ceremony.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/68300221@N05/6214756223/

Our biggest challenge: We planned the wedding ourselves without the help of event organizers, from across the globe. The wedding was in Bali and we finalized the plan from Los Angeles. We relied on emails, Blackberry Messenger, and Skype. The 15-hour time difference was problematic at times.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/68300221@N05/6215246270/

We kept our plan a secret from our families, especially from the conservative and traditional (Chinese) paternal side of my family, because we feared that they would have interfered with our plans or gotten angry at us. I wasn't sure they would love the idea of performers in studded leather thongs, topless body builders, heavy metal and stomp music, the fact that the Christian ceremony was performed in a wine-tasting room, the black ribbon on the chairs, and my vegan-leather corset dress.

entertainment2-end

They thought that I did not take the wedding planning seriously and decided to remedy it. We had to straighten everything up with the vendors and explain what we actually wanted. Since it was a multicultural wedding, we had to accommodate each side of our family's wishes and traditions while trying to create an event we could enjoy and proudly present as well.

They Love the Stiltwalkers

We wanted the stilt walkers and the Bali dancers (who served canape during the cocktail party) to look like they were walking on clouds for the duration of the party. We could not find an appropriate smoke machine and enough dry ice to create the effect. We ended up using a different ambiance effect instead.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/68300221@N05/6214721289/

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We also wanted to borrow mannequins and dress them in the outfit we wore during the religious and tea ceremony and put them in a fake gondola at the hotel's swimming pool and on the hotel's roof. We couldn't find any so we had to accept it and do without.

My favorite moment: The moment Yoichi uttered his wedding vows. The earnest way he said it, and his brightly shining eyes, brought tears to my eyes as well.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/68300221@N05/6214724989/

Was there anything you were sure was going to be a total disaster that unexpectedly turned out great? It turned out that the guests (even the elderly and the conservative ones) did not really mind the topless body builders and the stilt walkers in studded leather thongs. They even took copious pictures with them.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/68300221@N05/6214727331/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/68300221@N05/6215460348/

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Comments on Joyz & Yoichi’s surrealistic multicultural performance wedding

  1. OMG the cake!
    OMG the lanterns on the water!
    OMG the ceremony site!

    I wish I knew these people so I could have attended. I was hoping the 30 pound sword they were referring to was the Buster sword from FFVII (because FH and I might be doing the same thing), but it looks like it’s different.

    Do the stiltwalkers look like crabs to anyone else?

    • Lol, we’re also using a Buster Sword! FFVII is our favourite game in the whole world. You can buy replicas online for about £60 ($100? I’m not sure :P)

  2. Holy mother!!! This wedding is amazing!!!! A real creative endeavor, congrats! That sword…is the most enviable thing I have ever beheld.

  3. Holy Lord! This is insane!! This looks like the funnest wedding in the history of weddingsness. Now that – is a party.

  4. Now *this* is what I’m talking about!! this is the way to do it! WOW! Bravo!!!

  5. This has to be the most amazing wedding I have ever seen!! And the fact that you planned all this without an organizer and from across the ocean just totally WOWS me!!

    Congradulations!!

  6. This is the greatest wedding that has ever happened. No contest.

    I might actually have just wet my pants with excitement over the thought of a bodyguard posse in place of a bridal party.

  7. OMG, you had me with that first picture. I love them. And holy hell, a posse of bodyguards to walk you down the aisle? Shutthefuckup!! I’m DYING, I am so in love with the elements of this party! What a day to remember!

  8. OMFG Wow! What an awesome sword! How did you two do it all?! It looks like it was amazing! Congrats to you both, and I hope you have a long, amazing, loving marriage!

  9. WE ARE SO PROUD HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO BE PART OF THE ENTERTAINMENT FOR YOUR WEDDING, HOPE YOU ARE HAPPY,AND ALSO YOU HAVE SUCH AN AMAZING AND CREATIVE IDEA, WE NEVER DONE THE SHOW LIKE THIS BEFORE FOR THE WEDDING,SO CONGRATULATION XXX

  10. BALLS, MAN. I love this. PYRO, people!!! Plus, I know how challenging it is for peeps with traditional families who want to make sure they make the parents happy. In the end, I find (as a vendor) they usually are…they see how much fun everyone is having & how happy the couple is so that in the end, tradition is OK to buck now & again.

  11. the only word i can come up with is STUNNING! and yeah, what dootsie said…you had pyro!

  12. I felt totally honored when asked to make all the brides hair flowers and one of her bouquets, it was amazing to be a little part of her totally spectacular wedding, Emma (Hapitat)

  13. Do you live in the U.S.? You mentioned planning the wedding from Los Angeles but it was in Bali. So were family there and/or was it a destination wedding??

  14. Can you maybe repeat the show and have everyone from this thread to watch? 😉 I’d totally be there. 😉

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