The Met Gala is ‘tedious, boring, stressful’ and the ambience ‘isn’t super friendly’

Rihanna leaves the Dentist office in the East Village

Celebrities began arriving in New York late last week, and they were out and about at events over the weekend. I’m including some photos of Kylie Jenner and Rihanna attending various events – separately – over the weekend. Both Rih and Kylie will be in attendance at tonight’s Met Gala. Rihanna is one of the co-chairs, along with Amal Clooney and Donatella Versace. Who will dress in Versace? My guess that Rihanna OR Amal will, but not both. My guess is Amal. Anyway, along with the annual Met Gala, we now have the annual pre-gala shade. Page Six ran another lengthy (annual) piece about how the Met Gala is actually a total nightmare to organize and attend every year, and how it just keeps getting worse every year. You can read the full piece here. Some highlights:

The Met Gala has lost its appeal: According to insiders, the evening, hosted by Condé Nast artistic director and Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour, has lost its appeal and turned into a high-pressure, corporate mammoth….One Hollywood handler told The Post that the event was the “Mean Girls” of galas, with Wintour banning those she dislikes and instilling a pecking order everywhere from the red carpet (she reportedly dictates what time each celebrity arrives) to the seating chart (the closer to Wintour, the closer to God).

More A-listers are skipping it: Bored of the event and perhaps emboldened by rumors of Wintour’s imminent exit from Condé, some A-listers are opting to skip the festivities altogether — a move once unheard-of. The Hollywood handler said she has four A-list clients who declined their invites this year. “They want to take a year or two off. It’s the same thing. It’s long, drawn out and boring.” Another publicist said, “Look, it’s a very tedious night. It’s very much work for them. It’s very structured, there’s a lot of pressure to network, and [it’s] not that much of an enjoyable evening.”

Celebrities get stressed about everything: “I think celebrities are nervous [to attend] because it’s the who’s-who of fashion and the whole entertainment industry as a whole,” said makeup artist Ashlee Glazer who has worked with starlets for the Met Gala. “They are going to be judged from 360 degrees.” Adding to the stress is the fact that the Met Gala doesn’t allow most guests to have their personal publicists on the red carpet, let alone inside the venue. This is unlike other red-carpet events such as the Oscars, where celebrities are accompanied by handlers who help navigate interviews and photo ops, and straighten skirts.

People aren’t friendly: “The overall ambience isn’t super friendly,” said the gala regular. “It’s not like walking into a party where you know everyone and everyone’s happy to see you.” She recalled an incident when Taylor Swift snubbed a chatty, wealthy guest. “If you walk into the girls bathroom, all the celebrities are hanging out together, smoking together and ignoring everyone else,” the gala regular added.

It used to be fun, but now it’s crazy-elitist: “It used to be a really fun event,” said a fashion source who helps style celebrities for the red carpet. “New Yorkers would interact with David Bowie, and it was fun and amazing. But people say it’s just become a corporate pressure cooker… It’s very high school. There are plenty of people who have enough money for Met Ball, but . . . if [Anna] doesn’t deem you worthy, you’re not coming. Considering that it’s a fund-raiser, that’s extremely elitist.”

[From Page Six]

Most of the Page Six story is a recap of all the famous people who have bitched about attending the “sh-tshow,” from Tina Fey (who said she would never go again) to Gwyneth Paltrow, Lena Dunham and Amy Schumer (all of whom said it was awful, but came back). I mean, I’m not going to cry a river for these celebrities – I can acknowledge that it’s probably not fun for them and that Anna Wintour is kind of vicious, but also… it’s just a party. A very structured party where you’re mingling and networking with A-listers. And models. And reality stars. Plus, I really feel like this year’s gala is going to be sort of good? Fingers crossed.

Rihanna rolls up in NY Yankees Gucci for the Gucci store opening

Kylie Jenner arrives at The Mercer Hotel ahead of the Met Gala

Photos courtesy of Backgrid.

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84 Responses to “The Met Gala is ‘tedious, boring, stressful’ and the ambience ‘isn’t super friendly’”

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  1. Patricia says:

    All I know is that I feel a deep level of hatred for that black jacket Ri is wearing. I am unaccustomed to a garment inspiring this level of disgust in me.

    • lightpurple says:

      As a Red Sox fan, initially, all I saw was the Yankees emblem, which was enough to bring revulsion on its own. But, after seeing your discomfort, I went back and looked closer. OMG! Ugly upholstered chair with nightgown sewn on as a collar and doilies at the cuffs!

    • NameChange says:

      LOL. Ironically, the fashion in this fashion-inspired post is fug. Is that a sports bra and garbage bag that Kylie is wearing?

    • Annie says:

      Both of Rihanna’s jackets put the ugh in fugly.

    • LAK says:

      It’s a modern Elizabethan jacket with a draped collar rather than a ruff. It would work if the collar was stiff and fanning out in the manner of a ruff or magician’s cape collar.

    • Lela says:

      I agree with you but the fact that Riri is wearing it is less offensive. There’s a certain skill she has for making hideous tacky outfits look good, on her only. If anyone else tried to pull off these looks I’d laugh, but something about her just makes these ensembles work.

    • Your Mom says:

      I didn’t know Henry VIII was a Yankees fan. 😂

    • MagicalDay says:

      Actually that black jacket is interesting- inspired from men’s 16th century aristocracy. I think it’s the way Ri is wearing it with Y2K retro fashion that makes it both “tired” and confusing. Imagine if she wore it over casual white or beige- ie, a beige t-shirt and beige ripped jeans? As IS, it’s paint splattery, w the camo cargo jeans & figure skating top. This coat could be styled so much more “clean”.

      • Ankhel says:

        That jacket is pure 17th century. Think of the three musketeers. The drooping lace collar and upturned sleeves are typical. It just needs some bucket boots and a huge hat with feathers. (No, not really, Rihanna. Please don’t.)

      • magnoliarose says:

        You are wrong. Ri is the 5th musketeer and has swords. The fourth musketeer was lost at sea in 1850 something or other.

  2. Chaine says:

    That old blue jeans remnant worn as tube top is hands down the WORST shirt I have ever seen.

  3. Caitlin Bruce says:

    Sis we bin knew

  4. Meggles says:

    One of my friends went in 2015 (he’s a non-famous actor who was in a West End play that transferred to Broadway) and had a good time, but I imagine if you’re a celeb and aware of the whole celeb hierarchy, it could be a nightmare.

    • Raina says:

      This is everything that makes me nauseaus. This elitist, hierarchy nightmare, the illusion of what’s important. My head would crack. If I were there, I guarantee I’d never get invited back; I’d just get drunk and focus on the charity. I don’t play these middle school games. It would be funny if it weren’t so pathetic. These adults, technically, vying for attention and desperate to fit in. Blech.
      I think Wintour is hard working and good for her to achieve her success, but how she’s handling it is not cool. So off putting.
      As an aside, is this what happens when you’re wealthy and 20 after having a baby? I was a smelly wreck of a zombie the first few months who wore the same clothes for days with frizzy hair and red eyes. And I wasn’t much older, 27.

      • Swack says:

        @Raina, you also probably didn’t have all the help she has – nannies, probably night nurses, etc. so she gets to sleep at night, isn’t always worrying why the baby is crying and probably (maybe she does, maybe she doesn’t) doesn’t change many diapers. She’s been on more vacations in the last three months than I have been on in the last 10 years.

      • magnoliarose says:

        Depends on how connected someone wants to be with their babies. Sadly some don’t and push them off on nannies, but others love them. Anna W loves her children, yet I don’t imagine it is a cozy relationship.
        She is a hard woman and a little silly, but her children are not as obnoxious as some others can be at times.

  5. Jayna says:

    With the Kardashians coming out in full force, et cetera, the true A-listers probably find it embarrassing to attend anymore.

    • BILLYPILGRIM says:

      Yes, the Kardashian tricks with their silicone, extensions, and matte lippies have infiltrated. Downgrading the gala to D listed mess.

    • magnoliarose says:

      I am glad it is finally catching on that the circus is over and who we are is good enough and beautiful. Mature and fluffy is beautiful. We don’t need to butcher ourselves or inject poison into our faces to be gorgeous.
      Natural and confident is everything. No more buying into the business of making women feel like crap.

  6. Nicole says:

    Yea this isn’t shocking. I know someone that used to cover this for a major magazine and it used to be less uptight. I feel like the only people that like the gala are those that like fashion (Rih and Zendaya) and those that need the profile (instamodels)

  7. Alexandria says:

    I’ve never thought the Gala was fun to be at. Outside of the red carpet I can imagine it’s very stuffy and boring. I can also believe that it’s elitist.

  8. Beth says:

    Why does she wear horrendous clothes like those? Gorgeous woman, but her clothes are distracting

    • heh says:

      to distract from her weight gain.
      which i feel she doesn’t need to do cause she’s gorge.
      but if you say its anything else you’re kidding yourself.

      • Jussie says:

        She dressed like this way before she gained any weight. After she wore that see-through sparkly dress she said she was going in a totally different direction with her fashion, and she’s mostly stuck to that since. Her style since then has been mostly focused on oversized clothes.

        It’s not like she’s been hiding her figure though. She’s been posting lingerie shots nearly everyday recently leading up to the launch of her new line, and doing photo shoots in swimwear.

      • A says:

        She talks openly about having gained weight, I doubt she’s hiding anything. Haven’t you watched her make up tutorial video that she put out recently? She’s not the type to distract from that type of stuff, especially considering the bit of additional weight looks damn good on her.

    • zinjojo says:

      The plastic, see through shoes in the top photo make my feet want to cry. They manage to be both fugly and horribly uncomfortable looking.

    • Carey says:

      What I can’t understand is how she became a fashion icon. I’ve never gotten her and never will.

      • Tan says:

        Me neither.
        Rihanna tends to wear the fugliest ensemble with fugliest makeup every single time.

  9. CadiC says:

    Does feel like the Met Gala jumped the shark and lost its luster when Anna Wintour fell under the Kardashian spell. Vibe of the event became less Vogue and more TMZ.

    I wonder too, how much the event actually nets for the Met. While the income gets publicized is that before or after costs as expenses must be astronomical.

    • TheOriginalMe says:

      @cadic. You said it, less vogue, more tmz. To put it in perspective, I can’t imagine the likes of Audrey Hepburn (were she still with us) at this thing. Or Lauren Bacall, Grace Kelly, etc.

  10. heh says:

    kylie looks good here.

  11. Hoping says:

    If even a woman like Rihanna looks bad in it, you know that come on what’s this tatter (and that applies to both the outfits, to me).

  12. teacakes says:

    No surprise that most A-listers aren’t particularly keen to rub shoulders with whatever budget ingenues/reality tv “stars” Anna has taken a shine to.

    And allowing Kardashians but locking out paying donors… from a FUNDRAISER….are you f’king kidding me?!

  13. Rachel in August says:

    And why is Kylie Jenner there again?

    • Cherrypie32 says:

      Lol…..I see you have not been keeping up lately. She is a “thing”

      • Rachel in August says:

        Oh I keep up, I just don’t get why any Kardashian/Jenner is invited. Unless Kendall because she’s an Estee Lauder face? Given where the family money really originates, it’s beyond tacky.

  14. Rhys says:

    Anna Wintour is the meanest of all mean girl and in that very boring and chliche way of High School meanness. I DO NOT understand how so many women are fawning over her opinions. She is there to SELL, to sell her magazine and to sell the names she deigned to be worthy. My theory is a lot of people are masochist who have a very low self esteem that’s why cliquey people like Wintour can reign.

    • Kelly says:

      I’ve never understood the Anna Wintour worship, or that of fashion in general. It’s like religion to some.

  15. Jayna says:

    Madonna is going. I wonder what cringeworthy outfit she will be wearing.

    I am excited about Rihanna and Amal being co-chairs, as they both love fashion. Donatella is a co-chair also. Rihanna always brings it at the Met Gala as far as nailing the theme. Amal rarely misses in gowns, and I did love the one she wore at the Met Gala she and George attended a few years back. At least, the three co-chairs bring a gravitas to the Met Gala to offset the Kardashian/Jenner onslaught along with other lower-level so-called celebs.

    • Milla says:

      I have no idea why is Amal co-chair but i wanna see Rihanna.

      On BuzzFeed there are pictures from 10 years ago. It was still classy event then. But as many said, Kardashians as well as Instagram models, they ruined what was supposed to be fashion meets art charity event

  16. Angry Bird says:

    Water is wet.

  17. Veronica S. says:

    I always assumed the entire point of the MET Ball was elitism, honestly. Why else attend if you can just donate?

  18. Cher says:

    If the Jenner/Kardashian’s are in attendance is the event worth the price of admission?

  19. courtney says:

    i just think of the likes of alexa chung, poppy delvegnee derek blasberg etc. smoking up in the bathrooms trying to look cool taking pics of each other like its high school. so smug and talentless. this even has zero appeal. all hype no payoff. pretty gross if you ask me

  20. tonetest says:

    Taylor Swift being rude to someone when there aren’t cameras and fans around? I’m shocked! Shocked, I say!

  21. perplexed says:

    “If you walk into the girls bathroom, all the celebrities are hanging out together, smoking together and ignoring everyone else,” the gala regular added.”

    Other than celebrities, who else is allowed to attend?

    I admit I can picture Reese Witherspoon lighting up a cig and shading everyone in a Southern accent, but I thought this was a party reserved only for celebrities. Which regular people would they be able to ignore?

    • Bridget says:

      It’s a gala fundraiser for the Costume Institute. A ton of people buy tickets and tables. That is, if Anna seems you worthy.

    • Sid says:

      The celebs are there to be window-dressing for the wealthy donors who are the real reason the event exists. It’s a fundraiser for the institute and for a while now the word is that the donors aren’t all that impressed with what the event has become in recent years.

      • Wren says:

        I’m not surprised. Fundraisers are supposed to be, in some sense, fun. If it’s not enjoyable for the people who are there to mix donating to a charity with a good time, it’s not going to happen. For a long time I wondered what the point of the Met Gala was, since all the media focus is on the celebrities and what they wore, or how loudly they complained about it. But it makes a lot more sense if the event itself is not FOR them at all but they are there to raise the profile of the event, to attract wealthy donors by offering a chance to rub shoulders with the very famous.

      • Sid says:

        Very true Wren. it’ll be interesting to see how this event evolves. Or maybe devolves.

      • boredblond says:

        It used to be a big social dinner party..now, you just show up to pose..because they just cannot be papped enough..be seen, then most take off. Makes me laugh that the theme is heavenly bodies – thank heaven for plastic surgery seems more valid for the guest list. This just seems like the least important thing on earth today.

      • perplexed says:

        Interesting. I’m wondering why a very wealthy person would even be interested in hob-nobbing with celebrities. If I were a wealthy Kennedy (by association even) or whoever else, a celebrity wouldn’t impress me much.

  22. MJC says:

    I know it’s elitist and all, but it does make me wish that just once in my adult life I could go to a fancy ball wearing a fabulous couture gown.

  23. Anastasia says:

    I’d rather give money to a homeless shelter or a pet saving organization.

    • Rachel in August says:

      Totally agree, something worthwhile aside from dressing up. All vanity and money and whose dress outdoes whose. Or who wears the most garish outfit.

      • A says:

        It’s a fundraiser for the Costume Institute. I get that the focus has been misplaced in recent years from what it should be, which is a celebration of fashion as a mode of art, but um, vanity is the fundamental essence of the subject here. I do agree that many of the guests try to out do each other to see who can get the most clicks for being outrageously dressed though.

      • magnoliarose says:

        @A
        Anna is done. No one who is devoted to the CI would be seen at the Gala anymore. They are losing money. Anna ha ruined the Costume Institute according to some. I agree. She let go essential pieces from the 18th c. to Worth and early couture.
        The Instamodels’ sponsors pay money, and some funds are filtered through the Middle East and Eastern Europe. Yes, money is being donated but at the cost of the exclusivity of the event.

  24. Bridget says:

    I’d be surprised to see Rihanna NOT wear Versace – sometimes you see a co-chair wear a random other label (we were never going to see Gisele is Commes de Garçons) but I think Versace would be thrilled to dress Ri.

    The event has changed a lot over the last handful of years, and all of the Insta girls just sped the process along.

    • Rachel in August says:

      Rhihanna loves Stella McCartney so we’ll see!

      • Bridget says:

        That’s not really how this works. There’s a pretty specific process to pairing designers and stars. She’s not just picking a dress out of a pile.

      • Valois says:

        What’s the process like?

    • Rachel in August says:

      I’m well aware she’s not picking something out of a pile, but the two are good friends and I thought one or the other could arrange something. It’s been a little “different” in the past few years.

      • magnoliarose says:

        You speak kindly. She has been brought in as a last attempt at credibility.

  25. Bsb says:

    Wintour has terrible fashion. She just wears the ugly drop hem dresses, they’re bag like and don’t look good on anything. Still can’t fathom why she’s supposedly in charge of trends.

    • ParlerBleu says:

      Agreed! Her own style is horrendous. Especially those awful sandals she seems to wear ALL THE TIME! I guess those who cannot dress, judge other people…?

  26. WendyNerd says:

    I looooove hearing about the horror that is the Met Gala, mostly because I hate Anna Wintour and everything she represents.

  27. Amelie says:

    I work in fundraising and I can tell you it’s not “just a party.” It’s a major fundraiser that rakes in millions of dollars for the Met’s Costume Institute. So yeah it probably is a major networking event more than a party which is why celebs probably don’t like it. The Met Gala invites celebrities to get press (otherwise no one would care) but they aren’t the focus, they’re just pretty decoration for the paparazzi to gawk at. Maybe that’s why they don’t like it as they are just being used to draw attention to the event (which is a huge duh) but it isn’t a Hollywood industry event like the Oscars. It’s a fundraiser for a department at the Met and operates very differently. Nobody is getting awards and the celebs aren’t being revered for being celebs.

  28. Wigs says:

    I’m pretty sure the Met is my least favorite Celeb event. All those ugly dresses for what is essentially is a fundraiser dinner? It’s way overhyped. I don’t blame people for not wanting to go, also the themes have sucked in recent years.

  29. brutalethyl says:

    Please, please, Fashion Gods, let Kanye attend his year with his hobo chic and his POC models. That would take care of the boredom and tedium, for sure. But it might jack up the stress level a few hundred percent.

    • Carmen says:

      Thank God Yeezy didn’t pollute the event with his presence but wifey was there alone, looking drop-dead gorgeous. She looks a bajillion times better without him. I smell a divorce.

  30. A says:

    A concept: We replace Anna Wintour with Rihanna for the Met Gala for the rest of time.

  31. Mylene - Montreal says:

    Demi Lovato talk about the Met Gala and its look horrible

  32. Shannon says:

    I’ve always thought it sounded pretty lame, not my kind of thing. It’s fun to look at the pictures as a peasant, but I’d never want to actually go.

  33. Laura says:

    The “theme” for the gala was religion, specifically Catholicism…WTF?! I’m not a Catholic but I find the use of a belief system held dear to millions of people as a party theme to be distasteful and insulting. Can’t imagine this stunt being pulled with Islam as the theme, even though it too is a hugely popular religion. Why is it okay to trash/disrespect Catholicism but not Islam?

    The Met Gala – and it’s snobby attendees – is the epitome of tacky!!!

    • Jayna says:

      The Heavenly Bodies exhibition seems to be Vatican approved, but I’m sure some of the celebs at the Met Gala will cross way over the line with the theme.

      “The “Heavenly Bodies” exhibition has, however, received the official stamp of approval from the Vatican. In fact, along with over 150 designer pieces, the Costume Institute’s next big exhibit will also include 50 garments and accessories loaned from the Vatican. Other brands featured include Dolce & Gabbana and Versace, both of which have a history of using religious undertones in their designs, and more unexpected inclusions like Chanel and Valentino.

      “We know it could be controversial for right wing or conservative Catholics and for liberal Catholics,” head curator Andrew Bolton told the New York Times. But, he clarified that the exhibit focuses “on a shared hypothesis about what we call the Catholic imagination and the way it has engaged artists and designers and shaped their approach to creativity, as opposed to any kind of theology or sociology.”

  34. Lilly says:

    I like that pink collar coat, but I ain’t Riri and couldn’t pull it off. But, wow, she killed it tonight.

  35. paranormalgirl says:

    We used to go, way back when. Before the celebrity takeover. It used to be a blast.