Students Pop Up From Church Pews During Wedding In Order To Perform 'Chapel Of Love'

Jun 04, 2021

Weddings are always a day for spreading love and happiness to the couple getting married, and their guests as well. Shannon, a bride from Ontario, Canada, decided to coordinate a special surprise for her groom, Rick, and their guests. She invited a group of 15 music students from The Music Depot in Niagara Falls, Ontario, to perform during her wedding ceremony in 2013.

The entire event was caught on camera, and at the beginning of the footage, you see one boy quickly stand up and begin singing “Chapel of Love” while everyone but the bride looks on in confusion. Next, a girl sitting beside the first student stands up and joins him in the song. The pair sing together for a moment before they are joined by another small group of students and all of their voices harmonize beautifully. 

Then, a group of guitarists walk into the church and join the performance. The effect of everyone singing together is incredible, and you can see the surprise and enjoyment on everyone’s faces. There were 130 guests at Shannon and Rick’s wedding, and they all were having a blast taking photos and videos of the performers. 

As the song nears its end, the student performers head outside, and the youngest guitarist gives a deep bow. Several of the wedding guests follow them out as the entire chapel breaks into cheers and applause. At the end of the video, you can see the bride and groom thanking the students for their excellent performance as they all stand outside the church and hug one another.

Another term that could be used to describe this type of surprise performance is “flash mob.” A flash mob is defined as a group of people who assemble suddenly in a public place and then perform for a brief time before dispersing. Usually, flash mobs are formed for entertainment, satire or artistic expression. Often, they are organized through social media, but in this case, the bride reached out herself and coordinated with the group ahead of time.

The first flash mobs were created in 2003 in Manhattan by Bill Wasik who was the senior editor at Harper’s Magazine. His first attempt was at a large retail store, but the event failed after the establishment was tipped off about a large group assembling and put a stop to it. Wasik learned from the experience and tried again in June of 2003 at a Macy’s department store and was successful. 

Flash mobs continued to be popular in the early 2000s until they began to be associated with crimes. Called “flash robs,” the term typically refers to groups of juveniles who organize online and then rob department stores en masse to avoid being caught. Wasik has denied the correlation to flash mobs and the National Retail Federation now refers to flash robs as “multiple offender crimes.” 

Despite losing popularity, the original flash mobs were meant to bring joy to people’s lives. In the video of Shannon and Rick's wedding, you can see the excitement and happiness on the face of every person in attendance. The spirit of the event is communal and brings people together, which makes flash mobs the perfect surprise performance for weddings.

The footage of the performance was posted to The Music Depot’s YouTube page and has received almost 14 million views. In the video’s description, the organization left this message: “A special thank you goes out to our students and parents, Shannon for inviting us to be a part of your special day and the minister at St. John's Church, who was more than accommodating!”

The video reached viewers from across the globe and people stopped to share their reactions in the comments section. “Nice things still happen in this world! Well done kids,” wrote one person. It is so lovely that the student’s performance can bring joy and hope to so many people. 

Another commenter shared that they think more weddings should invite flash mob performers. “This in my opinion was greater than any gift this bride and groom could ever ask for ... it was simply beautiful to say the least,” shared a viewer. The way all of the voices blended with the acoustic guitar inside the chapel was enchanting and definitely more special than any material gift.

Other viewers stopped to wish the bride and groom good luck with their future as a married couple. “That was so nice, they will remember that for the rest of their days....may they have a long and happy life together,” wrote one commenter. This video really brings out the best in others as there were many messages like this among the 1,500 other comments.

Shannon and Rick will be celebrating their 8th wedding anniversary in June 2021 if they are still together. Hopefully, we can get an update from them and see more performances like this in the future.

Did you enjoy the students’ performance? What do you think of flash mobs? Let us know your thoughts, and be sure to pass this on to your loved ones.