While Dallas highways were filled with carpools heading to Fair Park on Saturday, October 1, for the opening weekend of the State Fair of Texas, about a hundred luxury vehicles were making their way to the Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center.
At one point, no fewer than three Porsches in a row lined up on Flora Street to deliver their occupants to the black-tie opener of the fall social season — the 2022 Dallas Symphony Orchestra Gala that traditionally is a showcase of formal fashion attire.
Out of one of the Porsches came Gala guests Venise and Larry Stuart. She was in a light moss-green custom-made silk gown, complete with sequin appliques. The vintage gown had belonged to Venise’s mother-in-law back in the early 1900s.
The reason for Venise’s fashion choice was a bow to the evening’s Modern Art Deco theme, as called for by Gala Co-Chairs Donna and Herb Weitzman. The Weitzmans’ brainchild had the Meyerson decked out with sparkling black-and-white tables, each one topped with clear centerpiece towers spilling over with ostrich feathers.
In the lobby of the building’s Flora Street entrance, meantime, a seven-foot-tall backdrop depicting faux opera “sheet music” (specifically, Symphony No. 88 by Joseph Haydn) served as the scenic setting for photos during the Gala reception. “I would have put a Bruckner symphony on there,” commented one attendee. “A few more notes.”
The evening’s guests — 420 places were set for dinner, and a total of 1,000 were expected to enjoy the concert and After-Party — were encouraged to either wear black-and-white attire or go for broke with dazzling colors.
Dallas Symphony Association Board of Governors Chair Cece Smith decided on a delicious splash of pink in a Herrera, while husband Ford Lacy complemented her gown with his own colorful cummerbund and bowtie.
Hot pink was the choice for Jacqueline Stavi-Raines with husband William Stavi-Raines, who wore a bowtie with a pink-feather design and a matching lapel pin.
Another colorful twosome were Deborah and Nigel Brown in cherry red gown and bowtie, respectively.
Clay Cooley’s glittering tie matched the twinkling “Elvis” clutch that wife Lisa Cooley wore, along with her silvery blue Michael Faircloth gown with black leather opera gloves.
They weren’t the only matching couple, though. Charmaine and George Tang not only abided by the B&W request, but the bowtie with a George’s Armani tuxedo appeared to match Charmaine’s Sachin and Babi.
Other twosomes adhering to the black-and-white scheme were Kim and Greg Hext (she was adding a touch of glitter thanks to her Dolce and Gabbana stiletto sandal), Andy Smith and Paul von Wupperfeld, and Jan Miller and Jeff Rich. When someone commented about Jeff’s looking “younger,” he laughed and said he had received many such comments since shaving off his beard.
Barbara Sypult also opted for the black-and-white look, but with a splash of red thrown in for good measure. Barbara acquired her gown, a creation of the renowned French style icon/dress designer Jacquelyn de Ribes, in London in 1983. At the some point, she said, she’ll donate the gown to the Texas Fashion Collection at the University of North Texas.
Another fashionable early 20th century look was sported by Margaret and Mike Coughlin, complete with Margaret’s feathered headband and feathered boa and her mother’s vintage purse with a matching purple pouch for the mirror. And that cigar in her hand? It was a non-smoky stogie just for looks.
Before the program got underway, with Fabio Luisi conducting the orchestra and mezzo-soprano Susan Graham and baritone Thomas Hampson performing selections from “The Merry Widow,” with the Dallas Black Dance Theater kicking up their heels, Donna and Herb took their places on stage.
Donna kidded the audience that, unlike Herb (who was in a Brioni tux, by the way), she hadn’t written down any comments. Therefore, she would just talk about her dress — an Andrew GN fringe-trim turtleneck flare-sleeve top with tiered fringe maxi skirt. One fashion follower in the audience chuckled, recalling that the identical Andrew GN design had been worn by Kim Hext to September’s Cattle Baron’s Ball. How versatile: a dress that’s right at home at a hoedown or a speakeasy.
As for the production of the onstage presentation, Dallas Morning News‘ Scott Cantrell penned, “There were things that could have been better.”
For more fashionable looks of the evening, and there were many, check out MySweetCharity Photo Gallery.