Yesterday I had the pleasure of photographing a Bat Mitzvah at Penn Club of New York City on 44th Street between 5th and 6th. I was aware of a street closing and arrived super early, but the street was already closed.
Puerto Rican Day Parade 2018
Apparently 44th Street is where the Puerto Rican Day Parade floats were stationed prior to commencing its route along the busy streets of Manhattan. I had a lot of time, so I grabbed my camera and went out to 44th Street! The street was already filled with floats from Jetblue, Z100 and many other corporate sponsors and organizations. This year the parade was especially important. It brought awareness to the aftermath of Hurricane Maria and how it affected this beautiful island of Puerto Rico. So many people there remain with no power after 6 months from this natural disaster!
Bat Mitzvah Celebration @ Penn Club
Guests arrived close to 4PM. After the cocktail hour a grand entrance was followed by a lot of dancing. Girls usually dance more than boys. This celebration was no different, the Bat Mitzvah girl was a gymnast so there were lots of dance contests that ended up in hand stands and splits. Bat Mitzvahs typically have more speeches with dancing and Bar Mitzvahs more games. The only break kids and adults took from dancing was for a photo montage presentation, a fun Bat Mitzvah trivia contest and a few speeches. Our selfie photo booth was a huge hit, guests including adults and kids couldn't stay away from taking photo after photo. They printed and used our social media station to share their photos with friends and family.
Entertainment
Jerry Laskin Enterprises rocked the house, DJ Jason played awesome music, MC Andre and Roe the additional break dancer motivator entertained guests with non stop dancing, line dances as well as playing the iconic Coke and Pepsi contest. Kids absolutely loved them!
In Summary
I absolutely loved photographing Sydney along with all of her friends and family attending! I also really enjoyed taking pictures at Penn Club! The Benjamin Franklin Room opens a lot of possibilities for creative shots! Mazel Tov Sydney!