August Is Gala Season In The Hamptons

Vicki Schneps – All photos by Lieba Nesis

Those who skipped the Hamptons August 9-11 due to the supposed inclement weather missed out on a superb and primarily dry weekend. The Hamptons have a minimum of ten events a weekend as hotels are scarce and restaurants Bilboquet, Tutto Il Giorno, and Sant Ambroeus remain overbooked.

Dan’s Paper gala at the Muses in Southampton

Thursday night, August 8th, Dan’s Papers held its annual “Power Women of the East End” Event at The Muses in Southampton. Produced by Schneps Media, which is run by “powerhouse” Vicki Schneps, who owns over 90 media outlets, one hundred percent of the proceeds went towards the Southampton Day Care Center.

Honorees included 30 esteemed professionals from the fields of media, the arts, and real estate, showcasing the diverse and inclusive nature of the Hamptons community.

Bradford Rand, Ken and Maria Fishel at Hamptons Concours

The Fishels and Shafiroffs have once again conquered the Hamptons social season with soirée after soirée. They make dozens of magazine appearances, looking impeccably coiffed, while graciously opening their homes and hearts week after week to entertain the masses.

Jean Shafiroff luncheon Lieba Nesis, Ruth Miller, Meg McCartney, Lauren Roberts, Rick Rose, Maria Fishel, Mar Morosse, Louise Braver, Rebecca Seawright

Jean held a luncheon at the Bath and Tennis Club in Southampton on Friday with 15 of her closest friends, and then many of them headed to the “NYC Second Chance Animal Rescue Concert for a Cause” held at Common Ground East Hampton.

Patrick Verdonck, Dr. Lara Devgan, Devorah Rose, David Krieger at Second Chance Animal Rescue

Honoree Alexa Ray Joel—daughter of Christie and Billy—joined over one hundred others to dance, drink, and listen to Fat Joe and DJ Dimatteo entertain the pumped-up crowd. Publicity guru Norah Lawlor has taken over the Hamptons party season this summer with her expertise and hard work.

Jean Shafiroff POWER 30 event where she received the “International Philanthropist of the Year Award”

Norah maintained tight control over the red carpet, ensuring enthusiastic photographers represented a broad cross-section. Actress Alexandra Daddario, Lisa Blanco, Jean Shafiroff, and dozens of others showed their adorable pets to the animal-loving masses.

I would be remiss if I didn’t mention some juicy Hamptons gossip, including the report that 68-year-old John Paulson was suing his landlords at 1710 Meadow Lane for his $400,000 a month rent due to the estate being infested with rodents and excrement. And real estate mogul Ben Ashkenazy recently listed his 76-acre equestrian Water Mill estate for $125 million – New York’s most expensive coastal vacation listing.

The Hamptons are a mecca for animal lovers, art enthusiasts, and political fundraisers. Two weeks ago, Donald Trump took over; this weekend, Democrats Kamala Harris, Andrew Cuomo, and Kathy Hochul passed through as mega billionaires raised mega bucks.

Second Chance Animal Rescue at Common Ground

“Author’s Night East Hampton,” one of my favorite events of the summer, gathered over six hundred attendees to Herrick Park Field at 5 p.m. Saturday, including Alec and Hilaria Baldwin, to celebrate 100 authors who make the world a more erudite place, including Mary McCartney, Julia Phillips, Taylor Barton, Stan Herman, Zibby Owens, and Neil deGrasse Tyson.

Lang Lang Concert

Saturday evening was just as crammed with the ‘Holiday House Hamptons Designer Showhouse White Party’ in Bridgehampton and ‘The Diabetes Research Institute Foundation Hamptons Garden Gala’ in Water Mill. At the White Party, guests enjoyed a night of elegant design and entertainment, all in support of the Holiday House charity.

Patricia and Roger Silverstein

Meanwhile, the Garden Gala was a lively affair, with co-chairs Patricia and Roger Silverstein hosting the event at their magnificent house. This 70’s themed party was all about having fun while raising funds for the Silverstein Dream Foundation, a non-profit dedicated to groundbreaking research for the Diabetes Research Institute and National Jewish Health.

Sharon Chera, Sean Williams, Danielle Dannenfelser, Khaled Nasseri and Zain

While in past years, Hampton’s partying would mostly conclude on Saturday night, Sunday has become even busier as Bradford Rand and his team at Rand Luxury, whose event was rescheduled from Saturday, held their annual “Hamptons Concours Showcase” benefiting the “Southampton Animal Shelter Foundation” at the estate of Maria and Ken Fishel from 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. on Sunday.

Rand Luxury Car Event

600 Porsche and Ferrari lovers gathered to ogle over 200 luxury cars, one of which was a 1950s Carroll Shelby Corvette priced at over $10 million. They ate delicious pasta and burgers while bidding on trips and dinners. After three days of nonstop social and visual stimulation, my weekend concluded with the perfect antidote—a “Lang Lang Foundation Concert” at the palatial Watermill home of billionaire Chris Burch.

Lukas Barwinski and Alexander Liu at Lang Lang Foundation Event

The clear, glimmering sky, along with the spellbinding piano playing of 13-year-old prodigy Alexander Liu and 21-year-old Eden Chen, was part of the cultural world the Hamptons embraced during its three-month hegemony.

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Lieba Nesis

My love of fashion, writing and photography were something that always dominated my lifestyle however it wasn't until I was approached by the editor of Lookonline that I realized I could utilize these three skills in combination.

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