The red carpet has been laid out in front of the Kodak Theatre, topped with a plastic sheet in case of rain. Traffic is snarled. Tourists are flocking to Hollywood & Highland to see a bit of the Academy Awards preparations and snap photos of themselves with giant Oscar statues.
The theater itself buzzes with activity, as rehearsals continue from morning until night, with the occasional celebrity quietly stepping in to practice presenting the coveted golden guy.
It's Oscar week, and Tinseltown is all aflutter. Here's the latest:
——
FANCY FOODS: The Academy Awards Governors Ball will be set in an art-deco nightclub drenched in bronze and purple, from the tablecloths and napkins to the custom-made outfits on the wait staff and orchestra.
"It will be a very, very grand, elegant evening," says Cheryl Cecchetto, producer of the official Oscars after-party, held at Hollywood & Highland's grand ballroom.
Chef Wolfgang Puck is preparing dinner for the ball's 4,600 guests, and he gave the press a preview Thursday of what's on the menu.
There are bite-size Kobe beef burgers, topped with tomatoes and pickles so tiny that a chef used tweezers to artfully assemble each appetizer. Guests can also nibble on ahi tuna cones and Oscar-shaped smoked salmon finished with caviar before the main course: "A twist on the old classic chicken pot pie," Puck says.
For dessert there will be chocolate Oscars of all sizes, along with various cakes and fancy pastries.
It will take more than 300 chefs and 600 waiters to serve the post-show meal.
"Preparations are going fantastic," Puck says. "We are ready."
The custom-made outfits for the Governors Ball wait staff and all-female orchestra are new this year, designed by Jeffrey Kurland, governor of the academy's art directors' branch and an Oscar-nominated costume designer.
No comments:
Post a Comment