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Few are lucky enough to reach a 100th birthday. And those
who do aren’t likely to spend the occasion getting festooned
to embody their 22-year-old selves. But luckily for New York’s
esteemed Plaza Hotel, celebrating its 100th year, the signs
of aging are more easily lifted from murals than mortals.
With a $400 million investment and a full dance card
of architectural renovation experts, the hotel’s legendary
Grand Ballroom has been restored to its 1929 neoclassical
glory, complete with a white and gold color palette, arched
openings with Ionic columns, and the original chandeliers.
First gracing the National Register of Historic Places in
1978, the space has always played host to the royalty of its
time. The site of Truman Capote’s famed 1966 “Black and
White Ball,” it was also the venue of choice for Mick Jagger’s
blowout 50th birthday party in 1993 and the wedding of celebrities Catherine Zeta-Jones and Michael Douglas in 2000.
If your soiree style is more glassy sleek than gilded
grace, you can still take part in history—the renovation
includes a modern meeting space that can stylishly accommodate groups of 10 to 450.
For more information about the Grand Ballroom and meeting rooms, visit eventsattheplaza.com or call 212-546-5380
for reservations.
Lee Radziwill (left), sister of Jackie Kennedy, and
the original power couple, Mia Farrow and Frank
Sinatra (above), were among the beautiful—and
rich!—people who attended Truman Capote’s
famous 1966 Black and White Ball.
