Photos by Skyler Wendell, Sidelines
Story by Hannah Carley and Alyssa Williams
Keisha and Austin Bourgeois stood at the altar at the House of MatROOmony – a wedding venue located in the heart of Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival – surrounded by friends and strangers alike. Some sat shoulder-to-shoulder, while others peered through the windows, wearing bedazzled cowboy hats and floral bucket hats.
Two drag queens in matching velvet dresses, Virginia Slim Jim and Otto van Blotto, beamed at the couple. The queens guided the soon-to-be newlyweds through their vows, pausing before declaring the couple as life-long partners. Then, they deviated from the script.
“Would everyone please welcome Gwar,” Virginia Slim Jim announced, surprising the audience and the couple.
The lead singer of GWAR, an theatrical, costumed metal band, Blothar the Berserker entered the room, donning his usual tall horns and blood-red skin. He towered over the couple as the new officiate of the wedding.
“By the power vested in me in the state of Tennessee and all the planets in Bonnaroo, I now pronounce you a married couple,” Berserker said. He cheered with the rest of the crowd as Keisha and Austin Bourgeois kissed.
Festival weddings appeal to unconventional lovers and those who favor the unexpected. The House of MatROOmony began officiating in September 2021, and the barn remains a high-demand venue each day Bonnaroo, hosting about 20 weddings per day.
“I think the reason why people choose to get married at Bonnaroo is because, I mean, it beats the hell out of a courthouse wedding. It’s way more fun,” said Otto van Blotto.
To book the House of MatROOmony, couples must apply before the festival on the Bonnaroo website. Engaged couples can request for a specific Bonnaroo artist to officiate their wedding, but it isn’t a guarantee, said Austin Bourgeois.
Couples may be unaware of who will officiate their wedding until they walk down the aisle. Normally, drag queens officiate the weddings, but the Bourgeois were lucky.
“We had no idea,” said Keisha Bourgeois. “It was just like, ‘If you could pick one of these people, who would you pick?’ We picked Gwar, and there he was.”
Virginia Slim Jim and Otto van Blotto run the barn-turned-chapel, decorated with pink inflatables shaped into hearts and a hot pink podium lined with jeweled strings. The sibling duo includes surprise officiators throughout the festival once or twice per day.
“You’re able to apply on the Bonnaroo website. You only have to pay I think it’s like $120, something like that just for the notary, the registration. You do leave here with a marriage license,” said Otto van Blotto. “Folks are selected [and] given a time slot.”
“I think people want to get married here because it’s just such a special story that they get to say, like, I got married at a music festival, like no one can really say that,” Virginia Slim Jim said.
Will and Alyssa Higgins, a couple in matching teal hair, also said “I do” Thursday at the house. The ceremony did not include a surprise officiate, but that did not make the moment any less magical, especially as first-time Bonnaroovians.
When Alyssa Higgins applied for a Bonnaroo wedding in May, she wasn’t even engaged yet, she said. She never thought her and Will Higgins would be accepted for the opportunity.
“We bond over concerts,” Alyssa Higgins said. “We’ve always gone to concerts together. Going to a music festival and getting married, that’s just so us.”
The couple chose this location because Will Higgins wanted to see Post Malone, while Alyssa Higgins wanted to see Cage the Elephant. The four-day festival doubles as a honeymoon; the couple joked that no one else could say Post Malone played at their reception.
Most newly-wed couples at Bonnaroo are younger, such as Will and Alyssa Higgins who are 22-years-old and 21-years-old, respectively. Virgin Slim Jim noted that many couples are a part of the LGBTQIA+ community as well, as Bonnaroo is an accepting environment for all.
“A lot of the folks that we marry have met here and come back here year after year,” Otto van Blotto said. “Everyone here is just like radiating love and positivity, and that’s the whole vibe. It’s just like spontaneous love.”
Hannah Carley is a staff writer for MTSU Sidelines.
Alyssa Williams is the Managing Editor of MTSU Sidelines.
To contact the Lifestyles Editor, email lifestyles@mtsusidelines.com.
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