I Love Manhattan in the fall! The crisp air, the fashion, and most importantly, the social events! I kicked off the season by attending the Metropolitan Opera season’s opening production of Tchaikovsky’s Eugene Onegin at the Metropolitan Opera House. The new production is directed by Fiona Shaw and conducted by Valery Gergiev. I spotted Prabal Gurung, Diane Kruger, Jeff Koons, Barry Diller, Brooke Shields, David and Julia Kock, Julie Macklowe, Beth Stern, Oscar de la Renta, Amar’e Stoudemire, Dana Selany, Linda Johnson, Leonard Lauder, Patrick Stewart and Heather Graham in the audience. The music was so powerful! Those vocal cords blew me away! It was such a treat to be part of the magic of the opera.
Fall was filled with philanthropic events—and plenty of famous faces. My first stop was the New Yorkers for Children Fall Gala, which benefits youth in foster care. So many people came out for the philanthropic fete including Mayor Bloomberg, Gayle King, Peter Brant Jr., Victor Cruz, Hugh Jackman, Hanna Broffman, Julie Macklowe, Gillian Miniter and Alexandra Lebenthal. It was definitely one of the most fashionable evenings for charities in NYC. I also attended China Beauty Charity Fund’s inaugural gala, which was hosted by media and beauty icon Yue-Sai Kan. The event honored Vivienne Tam and debuted China’s preeminent haute couturier, Guo Pei, whose exquisite creations stunned all. Petra Nemcova presented the award to Tam in front of an audience that included Karolina Kurkova, Trudie Styler, wife of the UN Secretary General, Ban Soon-Taek, the legendary Carmen dell’ Orefice, author Amy Tan, Julie Macklowe, Anh Duong, Visionaire’s Cecelia Dean, Lisa Airan, Stacy Engman, Carlos Mota, Susan Shin and Susan Gutfreund.
When I heard that the Wallis Annenberg Center in Los Angeles was having its opening gala, I asked Alex Gobo of Ferragamo and the beautiful chair of the event, Jamie Tisch, if there was room for me to attend. Jamie graciously said yes, and wow, what a beautiful job they did at the center! The performances were amazing as well—from Swan Lake to the ballet dancer in break-dancer clothing. Kevin Spacey and the opening and closing acts were fantastic too. The glamorous guests and the fashion show truly took my breath away. LA is such a great place for the arts. So many people came out for the chic affair including Karolina Kurkova, Jared Eng, Marshall Heyman, Rachel Zoe, Alexandra von Furstenberg, Dax Miller, Amy Adams, Nicole Richie, Lady Victoria, Anya Ziourova, Brian Atwood, Demi Moore, China Chow, Heather Mnuchin, Jacqui Getty, Crystal Loud, Cameron Silver, James Ferragamo, Ferruccio Ferragamo and Gwen Stefani.
I couldn’t wait to get back to NYC for the 2013 Angel Ball, hosted by Denise Rich. It was such great energy! Usher and Pharell gave killer performances and all the guests looked so fashionable. So many people came out including Lara Stolman, Eva Cavalli (who dressed many of the guests), Hugh Jackman, Ilona Rich, Seth Greenberg, Alison Brod, Allison and Howard Lutnick, Lorraine Schwartz, David Schulhof, Inga and Keith Rubenstein, Emily Smith, Rena Sindi, Dennis Basso, Caroline Berthet, Marci Warren, Carol Asher, Reem Debbs, Nicole Miller, JP Bailey and Jonathan Cheban.
