(people calling, cameras clicking)
ELLETRA WIEDEMANN: Hello, and a very warm welcome
from New York City
and the first ever live stream broadcast
of the Metropolitan Museum of Art's
Costume Institute Gala,
brought to you tonight by Amazon,
the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and "Vogue."
This year's exhibit is titled "Impossible Conversations"
and looks at the works of two female designers,
Elsa Schiaparelli and Miuccia Prada.
These two women never worked together, so they never met,
yet there are many parallels between their fashion designs
and also their fashion philosophies.
TOM CAMPBELL: This exhibition, it features a fictional dialogue
between two great designers who were heavily influenced
by both historical art and contemporary art.
And really, we are...
The Met is uniquely positioned to provide a context
for this exhibition,
because you can see whether it's a Greek and Roman influence
or Asian influence
or the influence of the Surrealists.
You walk out in the galleries
and you see the kind of art forms
that inspired both Schiaparelli and Miuccia.
This is an institution that really believes
that fashion is a great art form.
NORWICH: Yes.
CAMPBELL: But in addition, fashion is accessible,
and I think that with the backing of stars
like Miuccia Prada, Anna Wintour,
Baz Luhrmann, and Amazon,
this helps us to reach a much broader audience
who hopefully come to see the exhibition,
and they might walk out into the rest of the museum
and be inspired, and, you know, a Met moment.
ANNA WINTOUR: Well, I just think
that what Andrew and Harold have done
is so amazing.
It celebrates two extraordinary Italian women, female designers,
who have many things in common, but most of all,
they both believe in breaking the rules of fashion,
which is obviously something I believe in, too.
NORWICH: Absolutely.
WINTOUR: So I'm thrilled to be here.
The exhibition is absolutely extraordinary.
We're looking forward to a fantastic night.
NORWICH: And what about the party itself?
I mean, you've raised so much money to help
the Costume Institute. WINTOUR: Yes.
NORWICH: $11 million this year, it's remarkable.
WINTOUR: Yes, it's our biggest Costume Institute benefit ever,
so obviously, that's a great tribute to the...
everyone being here tonight to celebrate Miuccia.
WIEDEMANN: It's so exciting that Amazon is innovating
in the fashion sphere now.
Can you tell us a little more about what you guys are doing?
BEZOS: Yeah, well, fashion has become
a really big part of what Amazon is doing.
You know, we have the Amazon website,
but we also have Zappos and ShopBop and other websites,
and we really wanted to participate in this gala
as a way of showing our commitment to this industry.
WIEDEMANN: Okay.
VITTORIO GRIGOLO: This is a statement, you know?
It's something incredible that "Vogue,"
every time, every year, pulls up with a different idea.
Incredible, powerful things are happening during the night.
Always a surprise.
And you know, celebrating two great names
like Schiaparelli and Miuccia Prada together.
This night is "Impossible Communication."
WIEDEMANN: Mrs. Prada, thank you for being here tonight.
How are you feeling?
MIUCCIA PRADA: Very well, thank you.
WIEDEMANN: Very well?
You must be excited, you're at the center
of this exhibit tonight.
What were your impressions when you saw it today?
PRADA: It's very good, I hope that everybody has fun.
WIEDEMANN: I'm sure. PRADA: And enjoy.
WIEDEMANN: I bet everybody is.
Good to see you, thank you.
NORWICH: Tell me about your involvement
and how you feel about being here tonight.
LIZZIE TISCH: Well, it's our favorite night in New York.
We think it's great for the city, great for the museum,
great for the fashion world.
We're just excited to be here.
WIEDEMANN: Did you know Schiaparelli before tonight,
or is this the first time
you've kind of been face-to-face with her work?
PARE: You know, I did a little bit of research,
and it turns out that we all are
actually way more familiar than we thought.
WIEDEMANN: I know, I'm amazed
that nobody talks about her more.
She invented wrap dresses, wedge heels, clothing glasses,
bras with-- swimsuits with the bra inside.
She's, like, a genius-- nobody ever talks about her.
PARE: Well, and this is all the stuff
that she's had an impact on that we now take for granted.
NORWICH: Everyone wants us to ask,
so I'm going to ask the tough question:
What are you wearing tonight?
CAREY MULLIGAN: I'm wearing Prada.
NORWICH: Has anyone asked you that before?
MULLIGAN: I've had, like, seven people ask me that,
and I was, like...
NORWICH: What are you wearing tonight?
That's a really important thing.
Everyone's screaming,
saying, "You're not talking enough about the clothes."
So tell me about the dress and why you like it.
PARKER: Well, this might come as a shock to somebody,
but I'm wearing Valentino.
NORWICH: No! PARKER (laughs): Yes!
NORWICH: Signore! PARKER: Yes.
JESSICA BIEL: This is the dress
that Mrs. Prada picked for me, so...
WIEDEMANN: Ah, Mrs. Prada picked it for you.
BIEL: I just went with it. WIEDEMANN: That's pretty fancy.
TIMBERLAKE: Miuccia picks a dress for you,
you say, "Yes, ma'am."
BIEL: You just say, "Yes, thank you."
WIEDEMANN: Yeah, you just say, "Whatever you say."
"I will do it," is what you say.
NORWICH: You look great-- what are you wearing?
BRUNO MARS: Thank you, sir-- Prada.
I'm head-to-toe in Prada tonight.
NORWICH: It makes sense. MARS: You see me, "Vogue"?
NORWICH: He looks great, right? The shoes, too.
MARS: You like those?
NORWICH: You got to keep those shoes.
MARS: I'm not giving them back, Prada.
NORWICH: Good.
What have you guys-- you've contributed to the exhibition.
Tell me what you've done.
CATHERINE MARTIN: Well, Baz has directed some little videos,
some films that try and describe the impossible conversation
between Miuccia Prada and Elsa Schiaparelli,
played by Judy Davis.
NORWICH: How did that go?
LUHRMAN: Actually, I guess the big scoop there
is that what people don't know
is that Judy Davis and Miuccia Prada have never met.
They'll meet tonight for the first time.
'Cause the thing is that Miuccia's an old friend of ours,
so I was able to be Schiaparelli, draw her out,
and then Judy brilliantly acted to the film of Miuccia.
NORWICH: I've seen it. LUHRMAN: Yeah.
So the illusion is quite good, I think.
WIEDEMANN: Tell me why you think it was so important
that Amazon was involved in this year's exhibit by sponsoring it.
CATHY BEAUDOIN: Well, we are so delighted
to be sponsoring the exhibition and supporting the museum.
WIEDEMANN: Have you seen the exhibit yet?
BEAUDOIN: I have.
WIEDEMANN: Okay, good, so you got a sneak peek.
BEAUDOIN: It is extraordinary.
And these two women are amazing and subversive, both of them.
WIEDEMANN: They are.
BEAUDOIN: And speaking across time.
WIEDEMANN: They made me change the way I think
about my own clothes and how I dress.
BEAUDOIN: I know. WIEDEMANN: It's great.
BEAUDOIN: They sort of converted the paradigms of beauty,
they really did.
WIEDEMANN: They really did.
RIHANNA: I love coming to the Met Ball.
It's a fun event, you just get to come, get dressed up,
come, have some nice dinner and some good entertainment,
and appreciate great designers and great people
who are in the fashion industry.
Which is amazing.
MARC JACOBS: Hello.
WIEDEMANN: You are wearing the most incredible thing.
JACOBS: No, just a lace dress. WIEDEMANN: Tell me about it.
No, I know, but it's amazing.
JACOBS: Well, I just didn't want to wear a tuxedo and be boring,
and I think Miuccia Prada
is such a celebration of the unconventional, and so it felt,
like, appropriate, somehow. WIEDEMANN: I think it is.
What are you excited about seeing tonight,
anything in particular?
JACOBS: Well, I mean, they're two women
that I've always loved the work of.
I mean, Schiaparelli is one of my all-time heroes,
and Miuccia Prada continues to be a hero of mine, and I just...
I'm looking forward to seeing the exhibition,
although I think there's really no comparison,
because each one of them is so unique, but...
You know, to have two heroes together,
celebrated in one exhibition is great.
NORWICH: Thank you to everyone
who's watched us on Amazon tonight,
on vogue.com, and the Metropolitan Museum.
This is a great party, it raises a lot of money,
it's high fashion, it's-- the difference about it is,
it's not an award show.
These are people who come because they love the museum,
and it's really been great.
We're so happy that you've been with us tonight.
WIEDEMANN: Thank you.
NORWICH: I'm Billy Norwich, and this is...
WIEDEMANN: I'm Elletra Wiedemann.
NORWICH: Sweet dreams, kids.
(people calling, cameras clicking)