An Elton John Impersonator Made a Surprise Appearance at This Wedding at Carnall Hall in Fayetteville, Arkansas
When cupid comes to call, you’ve just got to answer. For Madison Broyles, that moment came in a crowded college classroom. “I arrived early to class to get a seat in the front row, and Bradley (per usual) walked in just as the door shut. He wore a black tracksuit, his hat on backward and a North Face backpack thrown over his shoulder—I thought he was the coolest thing since sliced bread,” Madison reveals. “The second I saw him, I knew he was the one.” She made it a point to ask Bradley Burch to be her semester-long class buddy. “He graciously agreed to be my class partner, but as it would turn out, it took him a couple more years to be sold on the idea of being my life partner.” Years later, Bradley proposed on a mountaintop in Colorado.
When it came to wedding planning, the bride had been set on one of the personalized aspects since she was a young girl. “I knew without a shadow of a doubt that I wanted to incorporate the Razorbacks and our love for Northwest Arkansas in our wedding festivities,” Madison notes. “I grew up in Fayetteville amid a large family of entrepreneurs and financiers. As the granddaughter to Coach Frank Broyles, I learned first-hand the importance of hard work, innovation and (most importantly) what it meant to be an Arkansas Razorback.” So, in addition to hosting their rehearsal dinner and welcome party at the Razorback stadium, the lovebirds invited the team’s mascots to join them at their reception.
However, the easy decisions ended with the Razorbacks. “Picking out my wedding dress was quite the process for me because I could not make a decision to save my life—I loved every dress I tried on!” Madison exclaims. After working with a designer on a custom dress, the bride discovered a perfect match in the Monique Lhuillier “Wish” gown—a floral-inspired, lacy ballgown perfect for that “wow!” moment. “Months after choosing my dress, I was on Pinterest scrolling through a wedding dress board I created well before I was engaged. So imagine my surprise when I realized the first photo I’d saved on that board years ago was my dress! Right then, I knew: it was fated!”
Madison donned that clandestine gown on a sunny day in October—ready to wed her sweetheart. The church ceremony space was lightly adorned: arrangements of white hydrangeas, garden and spray roses dotted the altar. The bride carried a bouquet filled with similar snowy flowers, her grandfather’s Razorback 1964 National Championship Ring and a locket with a picture of her grandparents on their wedding day sewn into the silk around the stems.
After the ceremony, guests gathered in the tented reception space to celebrate the new Mr. and Mrs. in style. “Since hydrangeas are my favorite flower, the reception tent was drenched, floor to ceiling, in white hydrangeas to fit my vision of an 'all-white' ceremony and reception,” explains the bride. To achieve Madison’s dream of an “elegant and timeless, yet unlike anything you’ve ever seen” kind of reception, mixes of towering arrangements and low-but-lush floral runners could be found throughout the space. Ghost Chiavari chairs (matching the crystal chandeliers suspended overhead) surrounded tables sporting crisp white linens, transparent chargers and gold flatware. “Guests were greeted and served Champagne at the tent’s entrance by strolling Champagne-skirt girls who later changed into LED silk fan/winged costumes to wow guests as they danced throughout the venue,” Madison tells.
Speaking of dancing: the newlyweds sure know how to throw a party. In addition to the Razorback mascots who came bearing gifts of late-night bites, Almost Elton John (a truly uncanny lookalike to Sir Elton) made an appearance. “The Elton John impersonator Bradley hired was a complete surprise to me!” says the bride. “Since the real Sir Elton was slightly out of reach, Bradley enlisted the next best thing, Almost Elton John, to get the party started and he did not disappoint!” Capping off the most epic night of dancing and revelry, “I hopped on stage, turned around and fell backward into the crowd. Yes, the last song of the night ended with me crowd-surfing to Tina Turner’s ‘Proud Mary,’” Madison recalls.