Illuminating Ceremonies

Pricing

Prices start at $900

About Illuminating Ceremonies

Chris Shelley

Chief Mood Booster

I am your guests' favorite thing about your wedding. Since 2011, I've been writing and performing personal, meaningful and refreshingly engaging ceremonies for couples just like you and couples who are nothing like you. Couples work with me with an easy, collaborative process during which I become your favorite part of wedding planning. I take guest experience and your wishes very seriously. Your families will thank you for getting somebody who makes the ceremony light while still making clear how beautiful it is that you found each other. I officiate all over the US.

I am the funniest wedding officiant in the country. I know! Such chutzpah! But my goal is to be the best, to find that perfect balance of humor and dignity that makes a wedding ceremony a wedding ceremony. My experience as an actor, a writer, a workaholic and a spouse to a very smart wife have led me to be someone whom couples can trust with their ceremony. I've lived a lot, I've actually been married since 2002, so I know a thing or two about having a happy marriage. I'm a professional who can get along with your parents and grandparents as well as your friends. I've done ceremonies all over the country and on TV. I love my work!

In three words: Collaborative, Confident, Fun

Services

Ceremony types

Civil Union
Commitment Ceremony
Elopement
Interfaith Ceremony
Legal License Signing
Multicultural Weddings
Non-religious Ceremony
Other
Vow Renewal Ceremony

Religious affiliations

Interfaith
Other
Secular
Spiritual

Reviews

Write a review

5.0 out of 5

32 reviews

Write a review

Best Officiant Ever
•Verified review
•Molly R.•May 29
We love Chris! He was so incredibly genuine, kind, hilarious, and he knows how to handle a crowd. He was certainly born to be doing what he does. He spent months in communication with my husband and I making sure he knew us as a couple. I recently attended a wedding where the officiant mispronounced the brides name throughout the whole ceremony. Chris is the opposite of that. He’s going to know you and your story by the time he’s up there marrying you. And to top it all off, he dropped a wisdom bomb piece of advice on my husband and I, on the day of our wedding, that I think of often. I absolutely cannot recommend him enough!
Response from vendor•May 30, 2025
Thank you Molly! Not only was your wedding in one of the coolest venues ever (gotta love an interesting art gallery) but it was a destination wedding for me and I love to travel. I'm so glad you're so happy. Keep in touch!
Stellar Celebrant
•Verified review
•Taj G.•May 27
Chris Shelley was a fantastic celebrant who made our special day feel unique, personal, entertaining and authentic. He guided us through the process so we never felt lost or confused as to what he would be saying and everyone at the ceremony felt that our personalities shone through. We'd whole heartedly recommend him and he's handled the weddings of another friend of ours as well who only had great things to say about him. Hire him - you will not be disappointed!!
Response from vendor•May 28, 2025
Thank you Taj! Your marriage ceremony was a joyous event. It was an honor to officiate for you and Laura.
Forever Grateful!
•Verified review
•Kenny & N.•May 16, 2025
Working with Chris at Illuminating Ceremonies was truly a heartfelt experience. From the moment we first spoke, I could tell Chris was passionate about creating a ceremony that was a perfect representation of who we are as a couple. Chris took the time to get to know us and our personalities, and tailored the ceremony in such a thoughtful way that it felt so personal and special (our guests thought we had known him for years!). Their attention to detail and commitment to making our wedding day perfect was truly priceless. We felt so blessed to have them officiate our ceremony, which was filled with love, laughter, and a wonderful celebration surrounded by our fun-loving family and friends. We are so grateful to Illuminating Ceremonies for helping to make our wedding day an unforgettable experience.
Response from vendor•May 18, 2025
Thank you so much!! Wedding of the Year.
Perfect Experience!!!
•Verified review
•Alison•May 7, 2025
From start to finish, Chris was absolutely wonderful. He took the time to get to know us, asking thoughtful questions that helped shape our ceremony to fit us. With a perfect blend of humor and sentimentality, he brought our story to life in a way that felt personal but still relatable to all. When the moment for our ceremony arrived, hearing Chris deliver his heartfelt speech was such a joyful experience, even though I had read it multiple times. Afterward, so many guests approached us to express how much they enjoyed it and how great Chris was. Chris's passion for his work shines through, making each ceremony feel vibrant and special. He was the ideal choice for us, and I can't recommend him enough!
Response from vendor•May 7, 2025
Wow, Alison, thank you so much!

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As of early April, 2025, I have officiated over 640 weddings.

The first wedding I officiated was at the end of 2011, in New York City, at Rockefeller Plaza. It was cold and loud.

Yes of course! Let's make the ceremony uniquely you.

Yes of course! Let's make the ceremony uniquely yours. My entire process is designed for you to personalize it.

I have often run rehearsals myself, but usually they are a coordinated effort between me and someone from your venue. I am the rare officiant who enjoys doing them. I think they can be really useful and a really enjoyable part of the whole experience. I offer my help in rehearsals that take place within 2 hours of the ceremony. If you are having your rehearsal on a different day, I have a fee for that, and would only be available if I am not officiating another wedding at that time.

Yes of course! Doing my due diligence, I'd need to see your marriage certificate. But yes, people do this all the time - they do the legal part on one date and do the huge celebration on another date. Yes.

Nope. I am not a priest, religious figure or social worker. That said, I've been happily married since 2002, so I can talk your head off about marriage if you want. But who would want that?

Yes, duh, of course. That's officiating 101. No joke: it's the first thing I learned in this business.

I’m so glad you asked. The assumption is that officiants just show up, do their twenty minutes and that’s it. People have no idea how many hours go into getting to know a couple, finding the right words to say about them, editing, rehearsing delivery, re-writing, keeping the flow going, managing different moods you want to hit. Each couple gets 20 hours of prep, easily. And then there's the wedding day - another 2-3 hours plus travel time.

I’m usually with the couple until the 3rd day of the honeymoon, then things get awkward. Kidding! I leave on the 2nd day of the honeymoon. Kidding! I stay for part of cocktail hour, then I make an Irish exit.

Top-notch Classical Voice and Speech training and years of performing plays with no microphone. If a microphone conks out, I can still project really well. Also, indefatigable charm. And perfect timing. And humbleness, whatever that is.

Yes -- you would do the same thing if you were trying to save time.

I went to a lot of wedding ceremonies that weren't personal or even connected to the couple and I thought 'there must be a better way to do this.' It looked like a fun thing to do, so I interviewed other professional celebrants and officiants who confirmed that it was great fun. I studied at the Celebrant Foundation & Institute, set up this website, listed on big wedding platforms and here we are.

Yes. Also, I need people to keep spending too much money on weddings. Specifically, they need to spend more money on wedding officiants.

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Illuminating Ceremonies

Pricing

About Illuminating Ceremonies

Chris Shelley

Services

Ceremony types

Religious affiliations

Reviews

Best Officiant Ever

Stellar Celebrant

Forever Grateful!

Perfect Experience!!!

Preferred vendors of Illuminating Ceremonies

Frequently asked questions

How many weddings have you done?

How long have you been in business?

Can we personalize our ceremony?

Can we personalize our ceremony?

Do you do rehearsals? Is that included in your cost?

We’re legally married already. Can you still do our ceremony?

Do you provide or require premarital counseling?

Will you get out of the way at the end so you are not in our kiss photo?

How many hours of preparation do you do for a wedding ceremony?

How long do you stay after the wedding?

What is your secret weapon as an officiant?

Chris, aren't some of these FAQs lifted directly from your own FAQ page on your website?

How did you get into this business?

Are people spending too much money on weddings?

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