| EVENT REPORT 02.25.08 11:23 AM |
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| Blacked Out |
| The Interior Design Show marked its 10th year with an all-black party that included theatrical entertainment, dramatic costumes, and lots of flower petals. |
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Last year’s opening-night party for the Interior Design Show took on an all-white colour scheme. The "Decadence"-themed anniversary party for this year’s I.D.S. proved to be quite the opposite, with black carpets and chandeliers, and performers in black wigs, makeup, and costumes. Creative director Ellen-Ray Hennessy of DareDen Theatre Inc. planned the large-scale event for the second year in a row, calling on her music and theatre connections to pull together a team of unique entertainers to fill the showroom at the Direct Energy Centre on Thursday night.
Hennessy said she wanted guests to be constantly reminded of the party’s theme, so she found an “underbelly of talent” from around the city, including fire performers, burlesque and modern dancers, a man on stilts, and 30 “live statues,” some decked in dresses made entirely of flowers and greenery (provided by the Dutch consulate). Street artist Mike Parsons worked on a 10-foot by 10-foot canvas, which was later purchased by a guest. |
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PHOTO GALLERY |
 | A harpist and a singer performed on a flower-petal-bordered stage at the Interior Design Show's Decadence party.
Photo: BizBash |
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 | Red roses and crystals served as centrepieces on the tables surrounding the Krups Stage.
Photo: BizBash |
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 | The Dutch consulate contributed this dress made of gerbera daisies.
Photo: BizBash |
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 | House & Home's V.I.P. party included dangling chandeliers with small reflective crystals.
Photo: BizBash |
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 | Rose petals and black etching embellished a lit-up bar made of ice.
Photo: BizBash |
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 | Vert Catering served gnocchi in baked pastry cups.
Photo: BizBash |
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 | A violinist performed at one of the small stages located throughout the show.
Photo: BizBash |
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Opera singers, violinists, harpists, and a brass orchestra performed on small stages throughout the venue, wearing more than $30,000 worth of black clothing and jewelry. A team of makeup artists headed by Paul Hui and hairstylists led by Paul Jones provided elaborate black wigs and dramatic makeup. “My inspiration was sloppy couture, Victorian classical, Oscar Wilde,” Hennessy said. “I have a very eclectic imagination, and I’m of the belief that more is better.” The event took five months to plan.
Hennessy used flower petals as her main decorating tool because of the venue's size and the need to avoid upstaging the exhibitor booths, sprinkling rose petals around stages and on the black carpet. A black and rhinestone chandelier and a baby grand piano sat at the entrance, and dramatic bars—including a lit-up ice bar with black etching—attracted attention. Sleek black couches and tables topped with rose and crystal centrepieces provided a lounge area at the Krups Stage.
Eight food stations included smoked salmon and potato salad in crepe cones from Mistura, mushroom and fennel risotto in stemless martini glasses from Encore Food With Elegance, and a selection of Quebec cheeses from All the Best Fine Foods. Steamwhistle and St. Ambroise provided beer and Barefoot Cellars poured wines, but cocktails took centre stage, including the Black Current Collins, a vodka and black-currant-cordial concoction garnished with blackberries. Some guests complained of lineups and glass shortages as the evening progressed.
House & Home Media, the show's main sponsor, held a sectioned-off V.I.P. party with a contrasting white-and-silver colour scheme featuring Philippe Starck Ghost chairs, Lucite cocktail tables, jagged modern florals, and sheer white drapery. Guests had the chance to walk through the DesignLive exhibits, concept rooms created by such celebrity designers as Sarah Richardson and Brian Gluckstein, throughout the evening. The party kicked off the 10th year of the Interior Design Show, which ran through Sunday.
—Erin Letson
RELATED TOPICS
Interior Design Show, Krups, Steamwhistle, St. Ambroise, Barefoot Cellars, House & Home Media, Sarah Richardson, Brian Gluckstein
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