We booked Magic Moments for our daughter Julianna's Sweet 16 at Macaluso's in Hawthorne, and…read morehonestly, I cannot say enough good things. We chose them because Pete DJ'd our son's wedding and was fantastic, so we already knew the quality - but somehow, they exceeded every expectation we had.
Sal, the owner, treated our daughter like she was the most important client he had. He brought her into the warehouse, showed her the giveaways, the photo wall, and made sure she felt comfortable and heard every step of the way. He never talked down to her or treated her like "just a kid's party". Carol, in the office, was wonderful to work with throughout the whole process too. She helped keep the timeline of signing contracts, entering information about the party into the portal seem easy, and was always friendly. Pete, the DJ, called Julianna before the party for a phone meeting and treated every single one of her requests as seriously as a bride's. He showed up three hours early the day of, met with her in the empty ballroom before any guests arrived, allowed her to do a practice run of her entrance with the CO2 blasters so she wouldn't be startled for the actual entrance, and had the photographer take pictures of her and our family in the decorated ballroom before it became crowded.
The CO2 blaster entrance was incredible, after that Pete told us that the party would begin immediately and he was right. The vibe was full of energy and the teens loved dancing. Pete then set up the father-daughter dance where we chose the effect of Dancing on Clouds and Pete ran it so well, it's a moment we will never forget.
Pete ran what he called a table dash -- he called each of the 14 tables up one at a time to take a photo with Jules and then head to the buffet. No long lines, no chaos, just smooth and organized. Such a smart idea.
During dinner, Pete played the photo montage that we opted for. The Magic moments team produced it beautifully. Everyone loved it.
After the montage, the dancing picked right back up, and then the LED robot came out. He was unreal -- came out with foam sticks and the girls went crazy. He never lost his energy, even dancing solo when nobody was right there. They let Jules fire the CO2 guns on the dance floor at all her friends with the robot right there, and then he stood on the side taking selfies with anyone who wanted one. It wasn't just a performance; it was a whole experience.
This is where Pete really blew me away. Jules had 18 candle speeches, and Pete quieted the whole room down and told everyone she worked really hard on this and deserved their full attention. Jules is very particular -- she didn't just give Pete the songs for each candle, she gave him the exact timestamp to start each song so the right lyrics would hit while each person walked up. Every single song had a time. And Pete nailed every single one. But the part that really got me -- one of the candles was for my grandmother, who is ninety-two and was in the hospital and couldn't be there. The day before the party, Jules came with me to the hospital and we took a photo of my grandma holding the candle. I texted it to Pete, and during Jules' speech for Nona, he put that photo up on the big screens. So, Nona was there. I will never forget that. Pete isn't just a DJ he is someone who cares about your family.
After the speeches, the dessert buffet opened for the Venetian hour, and then it was basically the last hour of dancing. Pete never lost the vibe -- he continuously played fantastic movie music that the girls loved. We also paid extra for the candid photographer, and it was one of the best decisions we made. All night, his photos were going up on the TVs in real time -- the entrance, the dancing, the candles, all on the screens while the night was still happening. And at the end of the night, we walked out with all the photos on a stick. No waiting weeks.
The photo booth technician was the sweetest. She worked so hard the entire night, helping people with props and making sure everyone got their digital print. Nelson was our main photographer, and he was amazing with Jules all night. The videographer was awesome too. All employees were from Magic Moments. Every single one brought the same energy and professionalism.
If you are on the fence about booking Magic Moments, stop. Just book them. From Sal, Carol and Pete running the entire night to every staff member they brought - these people care. They cared about our daughter, they cared about our family, and they cared about every detail down to the second. We had 10 tables of teens dancing all night, 4 tables of adults amazed at the production happening, a grandmother in the hospital who was still part of the party, and a 16-year-old daughter who felt like the most important person in the room and all her dreams come true. I cannot recommend them enough.
