Harlan’s Distrito Bar Mitzvah in Philadelphia
This past spring, I had the pleasure of DJing Harlan’s Bar Mitzvah which was a great time had by all. Harlan was one cool kid and I knew from the start he was going to be a lot of fun. The party was held at Jose Garces’s “Distrito” restaurant located in the vicinity of Center City Philadelphia. This is by far one of the coolest places I have ever had the opportunity to perform. The moment you walk into the restaurant you are in awe, as the décor and colors help to set the ambiance for the evening and – in this case – didn’t disappoint.
Harlan and his family were amazing. Jen – the event planner who put it all together – is amazing at planning all aspects of her parties. I knew the kids were ready to let loose and have fun from the moment cocktail hour began. While the adults enjoyed their cocktails, the kids started dancing and partying with my staff and myself. We jumped right into a few line dances and the kids came right out on the floor. As cocktail hour ended, we gathered everyone into the room for our grand entrances and then we could get the party going.
Once we brought Harlan into the room, we packed the dance floor, with all of the kids and adults joining in for the Hora and other dances. As we sat everyone down, Harlan’s father sang his toast. He wrote his own version to “Like a Rhinestone Cowboy,” called “Like a Bar Mitzvah Boy.” Family and friends loved it as they began singing along with the chorus, and admittedly, I was quite impressed as well.
As the evening continued, the party only gained momentum with Harlan’s friends rotating from playing games, to dancing, to singing Karaoke in the lounge area. When the kids were gone, the adults were on the dance floor dancing the night away to the sounds of Motown, the 70’s and 80’s, all the way to the current dance hits. The evening ended perfectly, with all of the adults and kids coming back out on the dance floor to do more line dancing and partying. It was a great time had by all.
Kudos to Jen Angelo for planning yet another amazing event! She seems to always have a knack for finding amazing venues (and amazing clients). Mike and his staff at Distrito were on top on everything the entire night, so much so that I was so impressed with their work I referred my own my family who recently booked an event there. A big thank you to my DJs and dancer staff as well. and of course thank you to Jackie Bayne from Love Shack Photo for the amazing party shots.
Mazel Tov to Harlan and his entire family. We had an amazing time partying with your family and friends. I truly love what I do – a sentiment shared with my staff – and working with such great folks makes my job all the more rewarding.
-Marc
Images courtesy of Love Shack Photo
Bar Mitzvah and Bat Mitzvah
MC, DJ and Dancers
Philadelphia