Photo: Lieba Nesis
As the summer whizzes, thousands continue to gather in the world’s most affluent enclave – the Hamptons. While open-for-business hotels, Jitneys, and restaurants continue to sell out, the pandemic has created undeniably unfortunate changes. For one, due to the staffing shortage, the overcrowded Jitney bus continues to miss its allotted departure time and no longer distributes snacks. Moreover, most restaurants close at 10 PM, and 90 percent of the club scene is over by 2 AM. Citarella similarly closes at the early hour of 7 PM, and hotels were sold out for the entire summer a month before summer even started.
Photo: Lieba Nesis
Parties are another covid casualty as the Southampton Hospital decided to forego its usual dinner for a low-key cocktail party at Jean Shafiroff’s beautiful home in Southampton. I attended on Friday afternoon in a drenched dress due to the broken air conditioner on the Jitney.
Photo: Lieba Nesis
I was ready to mingle with some of my favorites, including Fern Mallis, Cameron Silver, and the delightful Shafiroff family. The popular photographer Patrick McMullan arrived later, having covered three fundraisers with the energy of a 20-year-old. Patrick was spending the weekend with the Shafiroffs and was looking forward to photographing the upcoming weekend.
Unfortunately, one of the events he was shooting, The Watermill Benefit, was curtailed from a dinner party to a cocktail event on Saturday, July 30th. Having attended this $1,500 benefit pre-covid, I can attest that it was one of the premier happenings of the year – featuring the glitterati of the art world and luminaries Lady Gaga, Robert Downey Jr., Alan Cumming, Marisa Berenson, Alec Baldwin, and Sharon Stone.
Photo: Lieba Nesis
In 2018 attendees flew in from Europe to bid on the priceless art of Keith Haring, Marina Abramovic, and Roy Lichtenstein. The pre-pandemic evening routinely lasted from 6 PM-12:30 AM with a full cocktail party, dinner, and after party where Ja Rule performed. This year the “watered” down $1,000 per ticket 6-9 PM cocktail party contained performance art that was creepy with smoke billowing from a woman’s vagina, an Adam and Eve scenario, and a topless woman.
The art installations were even less impressive, with a giant Burning Man-like bamboo structure dramatically hoisted by attendees being the focal point – great photo opportunity, but so what? The unsavory lamb tacos, fish stew, and limited tables leaving guests seated on the floor had attendees dissatisfied and ornery – there was even a girl-on-girl fight that I arrived for the end of.
Gone were celebrities and art luminaries such as Jeff Koons and Marina Abramovic. I was reminded of the old days when I would arrive home from the Watermill benefit at 2 AM, exhilarated from a night of dancing and revelry and buoyed by the novel art and artists I had encountered.
An evening that did garner a horde of celebrities was the Good Plus Foundation charity dinner held at the East Hampton home of Jerry and Jessica Seinfeld Saturday evening. Jerry looked svelte and handsome and did a standup set, manifesting he is still in top form. Sponsored by Chanel, Jerry’s highbrow wife, Jessica, ensuring only the “right” people were there, including fellow hot-to-trot celebrity Gwyneth Paltrow and her husband Brad Falchuk, Naomi Watts, Julianne Moore, George Stephanopoulos, Barbara Bush, Lizzie and Jonathan Tisch and Aby Rosen.
This was the party to be at, but if you weren’t A-list, forget it! The snob index was the only thing exceeding the humidity! Vacheron Constantin held a more low-key dinner in Bridgehampton on Friday night, where Liev Schreiber and Caroline Vreeland held court.
Plebeian Hamptonites were reeling that Sag Harbor Bilboquet was closed for a Louis Vuitton, private party on Saturday night. I headed to Si Si’s East Hampton, an overcrowded bust. The young crowd was squashed together as the blaring music pounded, and I painfully regretted my $100 45-minute uber ride.
Photo: Lieba Nesis
Sag Harbor’s Murf’s was no better as sweaty patrons rubbed more than elbows, and I nearly got hit by a passing dart aimed at my head. Rapper Lupe Fiasco at East Hampton’s Clubhouse-was just that a “fiasco”- it was too loud and under-attended. The Clubhouse opened in July 2018 and is a treasure with bowling alleys, a full arcade, a miniature golf course, and a large private event space.
Photo: Lieba Nesis
St. Jude’s held its annual dinner at the Clubhouse Saturday night with an outdoor tent and the delightful band Mark Rivera and The Rockin Soul Stars. The St. Jude’s evening has become a staple on the social calendar of Hamptonites. With the Clubhouse kitchen closed at 11 PM, I headed to 7-Eleven Southampton, the best all-night market in Hamptons, where dozens of cars filled the lot.
Photo: Lieba Nesis
After scarfing down a bagel with butter, two fresh chocolate chip cookies, and a bitter coffee, I took a five-minute $30 ride to the Southampton Social Club, where hundreds of anxious partygoers waited in line. The superlative crowd and contagious energy of attendees was a perfect conclusion to an otherwise mediocre evening. I could even score a coveted pair of blue headphones allowing me to focus on the music and dance with abandon until its 3 AM closing – an early hour during pre-pandemic times.
Latest comments:
You beautifully, tastefully, and rightfully said it all. I do think Melania’s Adviser Herve Pierre influences her choices.
Fascinating article–fascinating man! Thanks, Marilyn!
Love my portrait Thank you Michel Haddi!!!!
Such a fun and bold take on fashion! Love how this collection brings a fresh, playful energy to the scene.
Beautifully written with fashion, identity, and branding intelligence!
it’s time fot the revelers and rude attendees to return from where they came. As for the parties like the Seinfeld’s have she belongs with that group, social climbing is so un becoming.