A Night on the Town

Fun and fashion rocked Washington D.C. last Saturday night at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner, given in honor of the journalists who cover political events in the nation’s capitol. The dinner traditionally involves the President making a stand-up routine followed by a professional comedian. Celebrities, journalists, and politicians mingle, creating what has got to be one of the best parties of the year. Some of you might remember when, two years ago, Stephen Colbert bravely railed against President Bush’s and the press corps’s failures at this event. Fortunately, thanks to some new faces in town, the party definitely had the sparkle that has been so desperately lacking these past few years.(Ah, you thought I’d illustrate this story with a picture of our First Lady, didn’t you? Well, since I’m going to be editor next year, I’m going to post as many pictures of my boyfriend as possible and there’s nothing you can do about it, so hahaha.) (P.S. He’s going to speak at Sarah Lawrence’s graduation ceremony next week. I’m tempted to crash.)

Bold faced names at the event included TomKat; Donatella Versace; Ed Westwick and Chase Crawford; Alicia Keys; designers Kenneth Cole, Jason Wu, and Narciso Rodriguez; my darling Rahm Emanuel (I couldn’t come because of finals, you see, but thanks for the invite, sweetie!); and of course First Lady Michelle Obama and President Barack Obama.

For the curious, Women’s Wear Daily has a great slideshow and, as always, Jezebel has a largish gallery.

Michelle Obama looked modern and chic, as always, in a pink Michael Kors shift. Most of the guests went in the opposite direction, sporting classical evening gowns with long trains. Demi Moore wore an absolutely gorgeous smoky Grecian frock. Andrea Mitchell sported my favorite, Oscar de la Renta. But I have to say, there was an interesting little trend at this event. Senior advisor Valerie Jarrett and White House Social Secretary Desirée Rogers, current D.C. fashion icons, both showed up in long, columnar gowns with an empire waist. Julia Louis-Dreyfus and Barbara Walters both wore black lace. Could this be the beginning, as I’ve hoped since Chanel’s Spring 2009 RTW collection, of an Edwardian revival? Please say yes!

To help you with your studies, here’s a video of President Obama’s performance (about 20 minutes long) and Wanda Sykes’s performance (about 15 minutes long). Enjoy!
-Ceci Cholst