{"id":371,"date":"2009-07-25T22:00:00","date_gmt":"2009-07-25T22:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/deaconsbench\/2009\/07\/best-wedding-processional-ever-now-the-backstory.html"},"modified":"2009-07-25T22:00:00","modified_gmt":"2009-07-25T22:00:00","slug":"best-wedding-processional-ever-now-the-backstory","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/deaconsbench\/2009\/07\/best-wedding-processional-ever-now-the-backstory.html","title":{"rendered":"Best wedding processional. Ever. Now, the backstory…"},"content":{"rendered":"

Well, the couple who launched this terrific wedding video<\/a> are speaking out about their exuberant nuptial boogie. <\/p>\n

They popped up a couple days ago on TODAY<\/a>: <\/p>\n

<\/a>Most couples wait until the reception before breaking out into the Funky Chicken on their wedding day, but Kevin Heinz and Jill Peterson figured, why wait to unleash their unbridled joy?<\/p>\n

The 28-year-olds floored their wedding guests by having their whole bridal party \u2014 including seven bridesmaids, five groomsmen and four ushers \u2014 boogie down the aisle in a choreographed dance more at home in a Broadway musical than in a somber church.<\/p>\n

Groomsmen split into sides as Heinz did a somersault in front of the wowed crowd \u2014 and the gown-clad Peterson quickly followed, shaking her hips to Chris Brown\u2019s \u201cForever\u201d while pumping her bridal bouquet into the air during the June 20 ceremony in St. Paul, Minn.<\/p>\n

Of course, some things are too good to keep to yourself. And when Kevin posted the wedding dance routine on YouTube, it quickly became a viral hit \u2014 some 700,000 people have already shared in the couple\u2019s novel way of showing their matrimonial joy.<\/p>\n

Heinz and Peterson (she\u2019s keeping her maiden name) appeared live on TODAY Friday to tell their story of how their artistic self-expression on the biggest day of their lives captured America\u2019s imagination and made them Internet stars.<\/p>\n

After watching the video, TODAY\u2019s Matt Lauer told the couple, \u201cIf that was a ceremony, I don\u2019t know how you survived the honeymoon!\u201d He then asked the couple who came up with the idea.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was mine,\u201d Jill told Lauer. \u201cI danced growing up and was a dancer through college and loved dance as a way to express yourself and share joy. So it was something I always thought about doing.\u201d<\/p>\n

The dance was bride Jill Peterson’s idea.<\/p>\n

It didn\u2019t take her fun-loving husband Kevin long to agree to the idea, saying the decision to dance was \u201cthe first thing we really decided about the wedding that he wanted to do.\u201d<\/p>\n

They then broke the news to the parents that their wedding processional wasn\u2019t going to take on the more reserved joy of a typical wedding. Jill admitted that her mom \u201cwas maybe a little nervous,\u201d and Kevin said his parents were \u201cdefinitely apprehensive,\u201d but didn\u2019t try to talk the two crazy kids out of their plan. They swore them to secrecy so other wedding guests wouldn\u2019t know what they were up to.<\/p>\n

Next up was a dance rehearsal for the wedding party. Anyone seeing the YouTube video might think the whole party was composed of dance professionals \u2014 the bridesmaids alone, with their waving-hands routine at the altar, are worth the price of admission. But Jill said it was actually more seat-of-the-tux than the final result would indicate.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe [practiced for] an hour and a half,\u201d Jill told Lauer. \u201cA lot of that, people were sort of making up as they went, people just got really into it and went for it. We just gave them a general layout.\u201d<\/p>\n

The wedding party rehearsed the dance for just 90 minutes.<\/p>\n

While guests were clearly overjoyed at getting a floor show even before the champagne flowed at the reception, Kevin and Jill are adamant they weren\u2019t seeking a quick kiss of fame by posting their dancing high jinks on YouTube. Like many other viral video sensations, it was originally intended for friends and family.<\/p>\n

\u201cI put it up because her dad had been really harassing me to get it out to some of his other family members, and it exploded,\u201d Kevin said.<\/p>\n

TODAY\u2019s Meredith Vieira noted that fans of the video are in for a special treat \u2014 the whole wedding party will appear on TODAY Saturday to do an encore of their now-legendary aisle dance.<\/p>\n

Lauer was clearly amused by the couple and their video.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you can have that much fun at the wedding, that much fun will carry over also into your marriage,\u201d he told them. \u201cWhat a great sign and what a great gift.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

UPDATE:<\/b> Mike Hayes, the venerable God Googler<\/a>, has his own take on this controversial conga-among-the-congregants. Read his thoughts here<\/a>. <\/p>\n

And if you just can’t get enough of the “Forever” dance, check out the live perf the wedding party recreated for the TODAY show (personally, I like the original a lot more, and I’m starting to think their 15 minutes are just about up…): <\/p>\n

\n

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News<\/a>, World News<\/a>, and News about the Economy<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Well, the couple who launched this terrific wedding video are speaking out about their exuberant nuptial boogie. They popped up a couple days ago on TODAY: Most couples wait until the reception before breaking out into the Funky Chicken on their wedding day, but Kevin Heinz and Jill Peterson figured, why wait to unleash their…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":365,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[19,20],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-371","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-links-r-us","category-this-and-that"],"yoast_head":"\nBest wedding processional. Ever. 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