"Their formula is [to] pick the hottest, latest, newest venue, get a really hot DJ, and then have the honorees," said Cara Kleinhaut, whose Caravents is the party's producer. "This year is very similar in form, but the people change, the venue changes. Our mandate from the beginning was to really increase the production value, to make it look high end, but still have all these different advertisers represented. It's a lot to meld into one event, one space. Opera and Crimson had red python and fur on the walls, so that was interesting. [At Beso] we have a really nice, neutral palette."

A 60-foot press wall led celebrity guests and V.I.P.s straight into a gifting suite, and the non-famous invited guests used a separate entrance for access to the restaurant. Inside, subtle sponsor integration was the name of the game; signage was at a minimum. Caravents integrated the products of sponsors like Zune into displays that included the product plus orchids and crushed glass. Svedka sponsored the bars, and dummy bottles alongside orchids kept the look uncluttered. "There aren't a lot of names splashed all over the place," Kleinhaut said. "You have advertiser integration, but there are no banners, no [obstrusive] names."   —Alesandra Dubin