Inside Lauren Levinger’s white wedding in Jamaica that honoured Hindu, Jewish and Catholic faiths

At 5pm on September 14, 2019, David Laven stood against a frond-covered wedding altar that boasted an Instagram-worthy backdrop of Negril cliffs and aquamarine waters of the Carribean sea. “I remember having tunnel vision and just seeing David,” reminisces Lauren Levinger about her walk down the aisle. While the bride was beaming ear to ear, the Emmy nominated director and film producer from San Francisco, California was “so emotional that I couldn’t stop crying as she made her way to the ceremony.” What ensued was a cross-cultural union in Jamaica that is perfect on paper, but the couple’s backstory reveals how their personalities used to be poles apart.

The tale of two cities

“David was a self-proclaimed punk rocker, always running around with his friends causing trouble. I was super innocent, enjoyed hanging out with my family more than going to house parties. We first met in San Francisco, where we both grew up. I went to summer school where he was there presumably taking a class as well (still unclear!),” laughs Levinger, a producer, creative director and content strategist living in Los Angeles. “We’d be lying if we said sparks flew back then,” adds Laven. The couple orbited around each other's friends circles for a while. “We finally reconnected in New York City after years on an outing with some mutual friends. Before I knew it, Lauren had tried her first beer bong, drank me under the table, beat me in a game of basketball, and wrote her number with a marker pen on my living room wall. The rest is history,” he goes on to reveal.

The proposal

The duo dated on and off for seven years, before Laven popped the question to Levinger, with what turned out to be a cursed ring at his grandparents’ beach house in Massachusetts. “After a two year split came proposal #2,” he reveals. “I’d framed all of the Polaroids we’d taken of each other to send them as save the dates for our wedding and wrote, ‘Will you marry me’ in small print on one of the photos. On October 23, 2018, I asked her to meet me in Sarah D Roosevelt Park. I then handed her the framed photos, and that was it. I didn't get down on one knee this time, but a lot of tears and someone made a lay up right as she said ‘Yes’,” Laven adds. “The second time around, David proposed with a new ring (that wasn’t cursed), my great grandmother’s ring,” Levinger elaborates.

The wedding planning

The Rockhouse in Negril, Jamaica was zeroed down as the wedding venue. “It’s quiet, gorgeous, and pared down. You can literally jump into the water from any part of the property, take glass bottom boats out to snorkel, and eat fresh uni from the ocean,” reveals the bride. “Lauren’s mom is from Guam. So, she’s always sort of carried a bit of the island vibe with her—it was a match," Laven adds. “David really did take the reins with the 9-month long wedding planning. I would get overwhelmed and am a natural procrastinator. He laid the groundwork for me to come in and add all the last minute, albeit very important details.” Wedding photographer Kristen Marie Parker got onboard to capture the couple's special moments. 

The multi-cultural wedding in Jamaica

At the furthest point of the beach property overlooking the ocean, Levinger and Laven’s guests congregated to celebrate their special day. The space was dotted with minimal, tropical-inspired seating and decor. “My and Lauren’s father are Jewish. My mother is Indian of Hindu faith and Lauren’s mother is Catholic. So, we did our best to make it a multi-faith yet non-denominational wedding. My best friend, Renalde Jett, conducted the wedding,” reveals the groom. “Right before the ceremony it rained, so the sky was a little grey and really calm. One of the things that stood out about our ceremony was how much everyone laughed. Lots of jokes, movie references, Ren struggling to recite a traditional Jewish prayer to kick things off—it was a good day,” recalls the bride.

The bride made her entry on ‘You & Me’ by Penny & The Quarters. The nuptials opened with a Jewish prayer. “To honour my Indian heritage, we performed the saat phere. We performed the seven rounds around a pious fire (or a candle in our case), holding a red kantha dupatta made of silk saris that were previously my mothers, almost 40 years old. We made promises to each other to assist and support each other and lead a balanced life. Renalde had us do an extra round for good measure,” laughs Laven.

The couple then exchanged their vows, according to Catholic tenets, before exchanging rings, and being pronounced husband and wife. “After kissing my bride, we stepped on a glass before walking out to Annie Lennox’s ‘Walking On Broken Glass’ track. The breaking of the glass is a Jewish tradition that denoted the breaking down of barriers between people of different cultures and faiths,” explains Laven. “I really enjoyed reading my vows to David and addressing him in that way. You never really get a chance to put into words how much you really honour and appreciate your partner, so it was nice to have a platform to do so, amongst all the people that rooted for us even when we were apart,” remembers the bride. 

The reception and after-party

The wedding ceremony paved the way for an al fresco fun-filled reception and after-party at the property. “My favourite part of the evening was surprising everyone with our choreographed Bollywood dance. I was a little more restricted because of the dress, the sleeves only allowed me so much mobility,” Levinger adds. Laven’s coolest memory is of the Hora [a circle dance originated in the Balkans]. “Danced to Klezmer music (in our case a reggae rendition), it’s where our friends and family lifted us on chairs (equal parts exhilarating and terrifying),” he elaborates.

The reception was followed by a big dance party that ended with everyone getting into the pool. “We organised a fireworks show to honour my late grandmother, who had passed a few months earlier,” recalls Laven.

The wedding couture

For the main ceremony, the groom chose an all-white suit “I wore with a traditional Indian kurta and a white suede Yamaka hat. In Hindu customs, it’s traditional to wear red at a wedding and white is for funerals. While it might seem a bit of a faux pas, the colour choice also signalled the death of my single life and the birth of my married life,” adds Laven. He also wore a salmon pink Nehru jacket with a matching kurta underneath and a Hawaiian shirt.

The bride had five outfit changes part of her trousseau, from casual beach ensembles to a custom Alexander Wang gown for the nuptials. “Alex is one of my oldest friends. Growing up together, we would play dress up, and he would design these makeshift outfits for me. I was also a “model” in Alex’s first (unofficial) fashion show in San Francisco, so it was always the plan to have him make the most important dress I would ever wear. I wanted something simple and classic, but I wanted Alex to put his stamp on it,” reveals Levinger. The result was a Carolyn Bessette Kennedy-wedding gown inspired creation—an off-the-shoulder, long-sleeved bridal attire. The train was taken from the Met Gala dress Alex had made for Hailey Bieber. 

She also included a white Alaïa dress to her bridal line-up. On the night of the wedding, “I went from my bridal gown to a vintage red Alaia number, to a Givenchy see-through pearl dress to matching airbrushed “just married” T-shirt, to my after-pool-party bathing suit.”

Scroll ahead to take a closer look at David Laven and Lauren Levinger’s wedding album.

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