Getting married? Yes, but like everyone else? No!
So the hard part’s over – your partner proposed to you. Congratulations! Now begins the great adventure that is organising your big day and the question of the ceremony. But what kind of ceremony are you thinking of? In your wildest dreams, you may imagine a wedding straight out of a Hollywood romantic film: on a beach at sunset, in the midst of the ruins of a chapel, on a boat or at the top of a snow-covered peak. If the idea of a personalised, symbolic and emotional ceremony pleases you, then a secular ceremony is for you. A ceremony of marriage devoid of religious connotation and entirely in your image, with Emmanuel Carat, a secular wedding officiant.
Discover more about Emmanuel Carat here!
At this stage, various questions crop up quickly: should we ask a close relative or a professional to do it? If we want a pro, how do we go about choosing them? Will they understand our expectations? Will our guests enjoy it? How can we be sure that they won’t get bored and have a good time? These are all legitimate questions that every engaged couple planning their wedding has to face. To help you make the right choice in this little-known but increasingly vast universe, we went to meet Emmanuel Carat, who has been a pioneering wedding officiant since 2008.
“Yes, the master of ceremony may be one of your loved ones. Choosing them to officiate your ceremony gives you the reassurance of having someone who knows you perfectly, while being aware that this person has never done anything like this before. You obviously have a strong bond with this person and this solution minimises your wedding budget but at the same time increases the risk of blunders, and the lack of rhythm and structure of your ceremony. To make the bride and groom feel secure, I can work directly with the planner. In any case, make sure that the loved one is well prepared so that they know how to handle the pressure and control their emotions, as they gradually become aware of the responsibility they have as your wedding day approaches!” – Emmanuel Carat.
This is why many brides and grooms today want to hire a professional officiant. With their experience, they alone will know exactly the right questions to help you build the perfect ceremony together.
As soon as secular ceremonies gained popularity in France, Emmanuel was there. Today, after more than 22 years in the business, including 9 years as an officiant, this passionate professional still continues to perfect his work. Whether in the finesse of writing or the accuracy of interpretation, Emmanuel is concerned with offering the married couple and their guests “a real moment of sharing,” he explains; where the guests constantly oscillate between laughter and deep emotion.
This is his unique selling point: his ability to offer the perfect balance between the three pillars of solemnity, humour and emotion. He brings an air of freshness and originality to the ceremony, while managing to hold the attention of your wedding guests. This is a combination that everyone can promise, but that few can deliver, and that is acquired only with experience.
In addition, as future brides you need to be reassured, and to be able to rely on the experience and professionalism of your service providers. Emmanuel was already a comedian for several years when he discovered the his calling as an officiant. This allows you to get ride of all your fears in terms of rhythm, diction, interactivity, and contingency management. Don’t forget that you will only have your wedding ceremony once and that it must be perfect the first time, so choose a pro!
After each of his ceremonies, the same questions or remarks come back: “I enjoyed it so much that I didn’t want it to stop! How long have you and the happy couple been friends? You know, I’m religious, and I wanted to tell you that I found it more moving than a religious ceremony.”
These comments are also due to the quality of his speech. Emmanuel puts thorough and meticulous effort into the personalised writing of your ceremony. He knows how to listen to you and retain the essential information in order to transcribe your love story with authenticity and originality, while incorporating elements of your personalities.
To sum up, Emmanuel is not there to perform a simple “generalised text reading”, where only your first names have been replaced. He doesn’t stand there, paper in hand, blindly reciting. He aims to give you a personalised and meaningful ceremony for the entire wedding party to enjoy!
However, if Emmanuel is already booked on the date of your wedding, he can nevertheless answer your request thanks to his team. For the past 6 years, he has created his own team of professional actors who have been fully trained in his methods of interpretation. He remains however the principal organiser and author of your ceremony. Today, Emmanuel can therefore ensure up to 5 weddings simultaneously. At present, more than 80 secular ceremonies have been performed on his behalf by his professional actors.
Imagine that your future husband or wife is not a French speaker. Perhaps your guests don’t speak French, or are deaf or hard of hearing? This complicates the search for a competent officiant.
Performing more and more bilingual or sometimes trilingual ceremonies, especially for British destination weddings in France, know that Emmanuel Carat and his team can now fully manage, in addition to French, English, Spanish, German, And the French sign language. Ten sentences in many other languages can also be interpreted.
With 300 secular weddings organised by Emmanuel and his team, you can guarantee the quality of the ceremonies he conducts and his ability to satisfy you and your guests for one of the most beautiful days of your life.
For more French Destination Wedding inspiration ideas, click here!
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