A Saturday Night Shimmy at Colman Domingo’s Pre-Met Gala Party

Colman Domingo, Patricio CampilloPhoto: Sekou Luke

When Colman Domingo hosts a party, he takes his role seriously. When guests arrived to the Faena Hotel in West Chelsea on Saturday night for the actor’s pre-Met Gala gathering, they were greeted by the man of the hour himself, who pulled them onto the dance floor with an embrace and a twirl.

With the invitation asking attendees to “Put That Sh*t On!”—a shorthand instruction for maximalist statement dressing—Domingo opted for a feathered jacket and matching halter blouson; a handmade confection by Mexico City-based designer Patricio Campillo. “The look took us 20 days, working six days a week, to individually sew the rooster feathers,” Campillo told Vogue. “We needed it to be perfect.”

Upon arrival, guest’s cell phone cameras were slapped with a gold sticker, branded for the party with the signature “Xo Colman” on them—allowing partygoers to shimmy and shake with abandon. They included Natasha Lyonne, Instagram’s Evan Mosseri and Eva Chen, and designers Alessandro Michele, Haider Ackermann, and Marc Jacobs alongside husband Char Defrancesco. Emma Thynn Weymouth, currently threading the needle of fashion plate-meets-reality star on Bravo’s Ladies of London, got the feather memo, with the train of her white gown stretching no less than 10 feet across the room.

The preferred cocktail of the evening? The Catwalk, a custom offering from the evening’s partner, Don Julio Tequila. The name served as inspiration for many revelers to turn the dance floor into their personal runway, with the likes of Meghan Fahy, Leo Woodall, Nina Dobrev, Gabrielle Union, Heidi Klum, and Coco Rocha taking their turns as DJs Spinderella and Lina delighted the crowd before ceding the stage to singer Jacob Lusk. Belting out a cover of Bennie & The Jets, with not a cell phone camera in sight, it made for a rare moment away from the watchful lens of social media.

“We’re here tonight to celebrate the arts, in all its forms, and all of you here that can change the world through your art,” Domingo told the crowd during a toast. “Tonight I want you all to meet a new person, because through this community and connection with one and other, you have the power to change the world.”

Next up, Domingo is set to release a new film: a science fiction thriller directed by Steven Spielberg—who many swore was somewhere on the premises last night too. Cheers!