Mimi’s Corner: Met Gala Madness
I don’t know what happened. My invitation must have been lost in the mail. What invitation, you might ask? My invitation to the Met Gala for 2024, of course. I’ve been anticipating attending the event since...well, never.
The Met Gala is a fundraiser for the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute in Manhattan. I assumed one can obtain an invitation if one is notable enough, stylish and daring enough, and most importantly, wealthy enough. The ticket price this year was $75,000, up from a mere $50,000 last year. That’s some inflation!
But that doesn’t matter to this crowd. If you’ve got the ca$h, flaunt it, as they $ay. And flaunt it, they did.
I easily found photos of the guests online by searching for “best red carpet looks Met Gala 2024.” Check it out. It was amazing. Several celebrities wore lovely dresses, suits, whatever, that I deemed perfectly acceptable. It would have been a once-in-a-lifetime experience to wear any of them, a Cinderella /Prince Charming moment for sure.
But others? I think only a good sport or total narcissist (look at me!) would wear those.
One dress looked like a wet bed sheet. Another appeared to be constructed of crumpled aluminum foil. One woman looked like a huge black butterfly, albeit one with nine large rhinestones up the back (I assume they weren’t diamonds, but you never know with this crowd)!
The theme for 2024 was “Garden of Time.” Some of the designers stuck to the theme, and their costumes—er, ensembles, dresses, outfits, whatever—reflected the theme with flowers, petals, leaves, and twigs. Others? Not so much.
It did seem to me that many attendees wore garments better suited for Halloween, but that shows how old-fashioned my frame of mind is. There were see-through items—tops, bottoms, middles, with one naked middle exposing an advanced pregnancy. Not that there’s anything wrong with that, I guess.
Some dresses had trains longer than those of royal brides, and some dresses were so voluminous that I cannot imagine being able to use “the facilities” without an entourage for assistance! I’ve never seen a restroom stall large enough for some of them. Maybe they just wear Depends.
Many of the celebrities I didn’t recognize, at least in their full Met Gala regalia. I did see Brooklyn Beckham, looking very dapper in a white three-piece suit, with tattoos and a pendant instead of a shirt. Odell Beckham, Jr., (no relation) resembled a matador in a black suit with white appliqués. Naomi Watts was lovely in a black beaded strapless gown. Jude Law looked great in black tie, black tux. Perfect. Chris Hemsworth was looking mighty fine, mighty fine indeed, in an ivory Tom Ford suit. Oh my. Ariana Grande was sprite-like in a strapless ivory gown with a fitted bodice and yards and yards of diaphanous skirt. Her appliqués appeared to be butterflies on her face. Usher was one handsome dude in a black suit festooned with black beading and scarlet flowers.
But I wanted to say, “Nicki Minaj! Does your Momma know you are in public looking like that?”
British singer and actress Cynthia Erivo wore a black men’s dress shirt and tie, an exposed belly, and a long flared skirt with at least a six foot train, all, except the belly, adorned with hundreds of pink petals. She was down with the theme for sure! By the way, you can watch her stellar performance at the Royal Albert Hall online. I watched it last week and WOW! She is a combo Aretha, Chaka Khan, Whitney, Nina Simone, rolled into one great big voice with a presence that filled the hall. Brava, Cynthia.
I had never heard of Bad Bunny, but he hopped around with a bouquet of black flowers, sporting a black suit with what appeared to be tailor’s markings still visible, and the red tuxedo stripes on his trousers were on the inseam rather than the sides. His Henry VIII hat took it to a whole new level. Whatevs....
And then there was Lizzo … I can’t explain it, you just have to Google it.
All in all, seeing the attire of the guests was very entertaining. I can’t wait until the next Gala. Maybe next year my invitation will arrive, as well as a boatload of money to help me find a sublimely beautiful or suitably outrageous creation. I wonder what the theme will be! I’ll get my designers and financiers started ASAP!