Royal and Noble Guests gathered from around the globe for Carlos de Beistegui’s opulent ‘Bal Oriental’ at the Palazzo Labia in Venice on this day in 1951, 75 years ago, which has often been termed as the Ball of the Century followed by the Baron de Rede’s legendary Bal Oriental at the Hôtel Lambert in Paris!
Carlos de Beistegui hosted the spectacular ‘Le Bal Oriental’, also known as the Bal du Siècle ‘Ball of the Century’, at the Palazzo Labia in Venice on this day in 1951, with the theme inspired by Giovanni Battista Tiepolo’s The Banquet of Cleopatra in the Palazzo’s Hall. Guests came from High Society around the globe, including the Aga Khan III and the Begum Aga Khan, Princess Natalia Pavlovna Paley, Countess Jacqueline de Ribes, Lady Diana Cooper, the Duke and Duchess of Devonshire, and Daisy Fellowes .
The Duchess of Devonshire said:
The extravaganza gave rise to green-eyed jealousy over invitations and was the talk of London, Paris and New York for months. Andrew and I were lucky enough to be invited. He went in eighteenth century costume and I wore a simple, white muslin dress with a pale blue satin jacket, copied from a portrait of Georgiana, Duchess of Devonshire, by John Downman.
The ball was an unforgettable theatrical performance with entrees of men and women in exquisite costumes. M. de Beistegui, in a vast wig of cascading golden curls and a lavishly embroidered brocade coat, stood on stilts as to be easily recognised.
Daisy Fellowes regularly voted the best dressed woman in France and America, portrayed the Queen of Africa from the Tiepolo frescoes in Wurzburg. She wore her Cartier Tutti Frutti Necklace and a dress trimmmed with leopard print, the first time we had seen such a thing (still fashionable today, sixty years on), and was attended by four young men painted the colour of mahogany. So many women threatened to be Cleopatra that the host decided to settle it himself and named Diana Cooper for the roll.
One memorable entree was Jaques Fath, the Paris couturier, who came as Louis XIV in a headdress of white ostrich feathers as tall as himself, and a shimmering white satin jacket and skirt – like a doublet and hose – embroidered with gold. Cecil Beaton, dressed as a French Cure and dancing with Babara Hutton, was worth watching.
Wine, food and entertainment were provided on the public square outside the palazzo for the citizens of Venice. At least one Frenchman of noble birth, who thought he should have been asked to the ball, enjoyed himself among the crowd who were climbing up greasy poles for chicken and hams, and he was visited every now and again by the glamourous figures from the palazzo. As this extraordinary night turned into dawn, we splashed our way down the Grand Canal back to our hotel, having had the time of our lives.
On September 3, 1951, no fewer than a thousand guests converged, most of them by gondola, on this legendary building erected in the 16th century by an extremely wealthy family of merchants of Catalan origin. They apparently had a custom of throwing gold and silver cutlery out of the windows, exclaiming, ” Whether I have it or not, I’m still a Labia !”
The organizer of this historic soirée was Charles de Bestegui . A decorator and art collector, this unparalleled aesthete, grandson of silver mine owners in South America, had considerable financial resources to live the life he desired: lavish, brilliant, and utterly extraordinary. Also the owner of the Château de Groussay, this Parisian by birth loved everything reminiscent of the “grand siècle” of French decoration, the era of Marie Antoinette , but also the extravagant creations of the Second Empire.
Gilding, tapestries, consoles, art objects, nothing is ever enough to create absolutely extraordinary worlds, which Charles de Bestegui likes to combine in mixtures where Italian, English, Russian influences intersect… Fascinated by “the world of yesterday”, this extremely wealthy nostalgic, who liked to say that “ the man who thinks modern is out of fashion ”, indulged himself by buying the Palazzo Labia in 1948, then occupied by a company specializing in the creation of luxury textiles.
During the following years, Bestegui embarked on a renovation project of insane proportions. Exceptional furniture, mirrors, brocades, velvets, Murano glass chandeliers, objects brought from his father’s Madrid palace enhanced the frescoes signed by the greatest painters, including those of Giambattista Tiepolo depicting, among others, Antony and Cleopatra in the immense ballroom.
To celebrate the completion of the renovations, Bestegui threw a party. This housewarming was as extravagant as he was: the evening of September 3, 1951, would go down in history as… the Ball of the Century . While the nearby Venice Film Festival ensured the presence of a host of actors and actresses, in addition to Barbara Hutton , guests also included Daisy Fellows , considered the most elegant woman in the world, Salvador Dalí and Gala , Lady Churchill , the Aga Khan, Jacqueline de Ribes , the Marquis de Talleyrand , Orson Welles , the couturier Jacques Fath , and of course, all of Italy’s princesses, countesses, and aristocratic families ( Princess Margaret having, it seems, declined the invitation). Around 11 p.m., all these illustrious figures arrived aboard 400 gondolas. It will take more than an hour and a half for the guests to disembark and be greeted by 75 servants wearing the livery of the Bestegui family, or those of noble families.
Charles, also known as Carlos, donned the costume of the Venetian procurator, complete with an enormous wig and platform shoes that allowed him to tower above the crowd. Outside, the people of Venice applauded this reenactment worthy of Casanova’s Memoirs: apparently, the atmosphere was cordial, and the elegant participants exchanged greetings through the windows with the matrons of the lagoon. Around one in the morning, the “entrances” began, orchestrated by Boris Kochno , the partner of decorator Christian Bérard , a close friend of Christian Dior , who was also attending the festivities.”
It was the most beautiful evening I have ever seen and will ever see. The splendor of the costumes almost equaled the triumphant attire of the figures in Tiepolo’s frescoes on the walls.” “The sheer depth of the Italian night placed this nocturnal spectacle outside of time,” he would later recall, evoking that evening where not only couturiers but also designer couture outfits mingled, including those by Dior, Balenciaga , Pierre Cardin, Nina Ricci, Jacques Fath…
But for now, let’s welcome Cleopatra ( Lady Diana Cooper ), a mini-Mozart equipped with a mini-violin, the Chevalier d’Éon (the Duchess of Polignac ), the Emperor and Empress of China ( Arturo Lopez , another historical jet-setter, and his wife), the Four Seasons ( Princesses Colonna , Del Drago , Ruspoli , and Consuelo Crespi ), all walking on an exact replica of the carpet from Louis XV’s bedroom at Versailles… The Marquis de Cuevas (another genius reveler) composed the soundtrack, played live by an orchestra in 18th-century costume until dawn…
What remains of that memorable evening? “Our lavish friend B. had decided to defy time; to rebuild a palace is to say no to the abyss, it’s like writing In Search of Lost Time. Once his work was finished, B. lost interest in it ,” the writer and diplomat Paul Morandwould later say – the palace would be sold in 1964 to Italian radio and television. But that evening, two photographers whose images have become iconic were present: Robert Doisneau and Cecil Beaton , as well as Alexandre Serbiakoff . Having fled Soviet Russia in the 1930s, this illustrator became the private watercolorist for wealthy individuals, including the Duke and Duchess of Windsor and, of course, Charles de Beisteigui. As a memento, they published a small book of 17 watercolors entitled Labia, an evocation of a famous palace and a sumptuous ball , now reissued by the publishing house Gourcuff Gradenigo . A lovely way to immerse oneself in a night that no guest has ever forgotten.
Daisy Fellowes’ Cartier Tutti Frutti Necklace
Devonshire Diamond Palmette Tiara
