Alan Cumming Performs at Bemelmans for Michael Kors’ New Store Celebration
After opening the doors to his new Madison Avenue boutique, Michael Kors welcomed the crowd to Bemelmans at The Carlyle Hotel for a cocktail party and surprise performance.
Guests including Nicole Scherzinger, Katie Holmes, Cristin Milioti, Iman, Julianna Margulies, Jane Krakowski, Sutton Foster, Nicole Ari Parker, Willa Fitzgerald and Meadow Walker wore their uptown finest (mostly black cocktail attire) for the occasion, which kicked off around 7:30. By 8 p.m., the Marc Jacobs show crowd rolled in, buzzing from the designer’s show held at the New York Public Library.
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“To me, this is New York City hallowed ground,” Kors said of Bemelmans. “I had my 30th anniversary party here. My first store was directly across the street, and I actually took the store because it was across the street. I’ve been coming here since I was 17: Not only does it have all this heritage, but now we see new generations come in. It always reinvents itself and I think it’s hard to have heritage and modernity together, which is what I like to do in my designs.”
Kors was sipping his Bemelmans’ go-to, vodka on the rocks, with an orange wedge thrown in “so it’s healthier.”
Kors’ treat for the night was a performance by Alan Cumming, who burst into the party earlier in a giant colorful furry coat (“this old thing?”).
“He’s a good friend, but also the fashion: I mean, his clothes are off the charts,” Kors said of Cumming.
“I love to be back at The Carlyle, surrounded by so many friends and so many friends that I get to make, but to be surrounded by kindness, because I just got back to this country and I found that kindness is not as prevalent as it used to be,” Cumming, currently seen hosting “The Traitors,” told the room. “And kindness is not so valued a virtue as it was just recently. But you know what I think is that the best way to deal with lack of kindness is to be even kinder, and to be even kinder to the people in our society right now who need it most. The people who have come to this country to no fault of their own, to seek asylum and to the members of the trans community are being so vilified, so horribly. So let’s continue to be kind to everyone, but especially to those people. And I know there’s a lot of kindness in this room and a lot of kindness in New York City.”
With that, Cumming took to the mic, much to the delight of “Sunset Boulevard” star Scherzinger, who was enjoying a martini with olives on her one night off from Broadway between cheers for Cumming.
The Tony winner launched into a rendition of Elaine Stritch’s “Ladies Who Lunch,” which he declared was “maybe a little ballsy to sing at The Carlyle.”
“Does anyone still wear a hat Michael?” he recited to Kors.
“Next week!” the designer teased.
“I’ll drink to that!” Cumming sang back, raising his martini.
Launch Gallery: Alan Cumming, Katie Holmes, Nicole Scherzinger and More Ring in New York Fashion Week With Michael Kors
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