International Debutante Ball
The International Debutante Ball is an invitation-only formal debutante ball to present young ladies to high society. Founded in 1954, it occurs every two years at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in New York City.[1][2]
Young women from around the globe and all over the United States are brought together at the ball and the surrounding parties with daughters of Presidents of the United States, diplomats, nobility, senators, ambassadors and governors. Over the years the ball has benefited numerous charities from the International Debutante Ball Foundation including the Soldiers’, Sailors’, Marines’, Coast Guard and Airmen’s Club of New York, which provides a home away from home for men and women of the United States Armed Services.[3]
The International Debutante Ball is considered the most prestigious and the most exclusive debutante ball in the world.[4][5][6]
Format
The International Debutante Ball is held biennially, with the most recent ball having occurred in December 2012.[7] Each ball is preceded by a number of events and parties for the debutantes, including the Bachelor's Brunch, in private Manhattan members-only clubs such as the Colony Club, 21 Club or the University Club of New York.[8]
At the ball itself, each debutante is escorted by two men: one United States Military Academy cadet and one American civilian. According to New York Magazine, the current organizer of the International Debutante Ball stated that "Every young lady should have two men."[9]
Each debutante represents her state or country at the International Debutante Ball and a song, e.g., a national anthem or a song associated with the country where the debutante is from, is played by the orchestra for the debutante when she is presented on stage. The military escort of the debutante also carries the flag of the country or US state where the debutante comes from. Each debutante must also greet a thousand or more guests individually in the receiving line. Due to the fact that there are debutantes representing their own US state or country, the International Debutante Ball has been dubbed by publications as 'The United Nations of Debutante Balls and the private society world'.[10]
The debutantes include aristocrats, royalty, heiresses and scions of American families from the Social Register.
Debutantes of the International Debutante Ball also include daughters of Forbes 400 billionaire businessmen.[11]
The International Debutante Ball has therefore been referred to as 'the debutante ball that presents the daughters of the world's top one percent'.[12]
Qualifications and Selection
In order to be presented as a debutante at the International Debutante Ball, debutantes must be recommended by a previous debutante of the International Debutante Ball. Debutantes must also be accepted by the Chairmen of the Debutante Committee of the International Debutante Ball and be able to afford the debutante presentation fee. Debutantes who are usually accepted are highly accomplished young ladies academically, but also in the field of philanthropy, charity and are from well-connected families.
According to the current organizer of the ball, the debutantes must be well-known with connections in the New York debutante and high society and as long as 'the debutante has the right connections, she has a chance of being invited'.[13][14][15]
Once chosen, each debutante is required to pay at least $16,000.[13] Additionally, many debutantes spend thousands more on haute couture gowns, celebrity hairdressers and other related expenses.[16]
History
The International Debutante Ball was founded in 1954 by socialite, philanthropist and humanitarian Beatrice Dinsmore Joyce,[17] who was dubbed as the 'Duchess of Debs' and the 'Grand dame of debutante balls'.[18] Joyce was inspired to create an American debutante ball after hearing Consuelo Vanderbilt make an observation about debutante balls and how lucky girls are who travel to debutante balls in different countries.[19]
The band leader Lester Lanin played the music from the start in 1954 until his last ball in the 1990s. Every guest was given a special "lanin hat". The first balls were held at the Plaza Hotel with 35 girls from different countries and different states. As it grew with more girls participating, it moved to the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel.
Chairmen of the Debutante Committee of the International Debutante Ball have included:
- Prince Ivan Sergeyevich Obolensky
- H.R.H Princess Chantal of France
- Barbara Anne Eisenhower (daughter of John Eisenhower, granddaughter of Dwight D. Eisenhower)
- Susan Eisenhower (daughter of John Eisenhower, granddaughter of Dwight D. Eisenhower)
- Mamie Eisenhower.[20]
Notable past debutantes
Over the years, the International Debutante Ball has had the honor of presenting many notable young women to society, including:
- Tricia Nixon Cox, daughter of President Richard Nixon (1964)
- Vera Wang, American fashion designer (1968)[21]
- Christine Marie Colby, daughter of the head of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) William Colby (1978)
- Princess Katarina of Yugoslavia, descendent of Queen Victoria (1979)
- Cornelia Guest, goddaughter of the Duke of Windsor, daughter of C. Z. Guest (1982)
- Charlotte Forbes, granddaughter of Malcolm Forbes (1995)
- Catherine Forbes, granddaughter of Malcolm Forbes (1995)
- Ashley Walker Bush, granddaughter of President George H. W. Bush and niece of President George W. Bush (2006)[22]
- Princess Natalya Elisabeth Davidovna Obolensky (2006)[22]
- Princess Octavia Willing Davidovna Obolensky (2006)[22]
- Countess Magdalena Habsburg-Lothringen, great-great-granddaughter of Empress Elisabeth 'Sisi' of Austria (2006)[23]
- Lady Henrietta Seymour, daughter of Duke and Duchess of Somerset (2006)[22]
- Christina Huffington, daughter of Arianna and Michael Huffington (2008)[17]
Other debutantes of the International Debutante Ball have included members of prominent American and international families including:[24]
- The Nixon family
- The Eisenhower family
- The Johnson family
- The Astor family
- The Rockefeller family
- The Vanderbilt family
- The Spencer-Churchill family[25]
- The Bourbon-Parma family
- The Habsburg-Lothringen family
- The Von Bismarck family
Impact
Debutantes of the International Debutante Ball have been dubbed as 'Blue Blooded Socialites' and 'the next it girls' by the media and 'The luckiest girls in the world' by the New York Observer.[26] The International Debutante Ball has also been dubbed as 'the ultimate debutante ball for young society ladies of distinction' presenting the next generation of eligible accomplished socialites.[17][27]
Debutantes of the International Debutante Ball form lifelong lasting friendships and connections with each other.[28]
The International Debutante Ball serves as a charity benefit, with money collected benefiting a variety of charities over the years. Chief among the beneficiaries is the The Soldiers', Sailors', Coast Guards', Marines' and Airmen's Club of Manhattan,[8] which provides a home away from home for men and women of the United States Armed Services.
Cultural references
The International Debutante Ball has been the topic of several media, both fiction and non-fiction.
Books
- Cornelia Guest, The Debutante’s Guide to Life (1986)
- Ward Morehouse, Inside the Plaza: an intimate portrait of the ultimate hotel (2001)[29]
- Kimberly Schlegel, The Pleasure of your company: Entertaining in High Style (2004)[19]
- Lucy Kavaler, The Private World Of High Society: Its Rule And Rituals (2011)[30]
Movies
- Metropolitan (1990), an Oscar nominated film depicting the lives of young, upper-class New Yorkers during debutante ball season. The International Debutante Ball is one of the balls in the movie.
References
- ^ Edge, Simon. "Who'll Marry Prince Harry?". The Daily Express (UK). Retrieved 18 December 2012.
- ^ Newman, Andy. "Women Draft Dates For Debutante Ball". New York Times. Retrieved 22 September 2013.
- ^ Bobley, Georgia. "The top debutante ball in the world". Guest of a Guest. Retrieved 29 October 2012.
- ^ Williams, Rose Betty. "International Debut". The Society Diaries. Retrieved 14 September 2013.
- ^ Rome News, Tribune. "Debutante Ball in New York City". Rome News Tribune. Retrieved 14 September 2013.
- ^ The Rockmart, Journal. "Brandon named to Bachelor's Committee for Ball in NY". The Rockmart Journal. Retrieved 14 September 2013.
- ^ B., Chris. "The 58th International Debutante Ball". Black Tie Magazine. Retrieved 18 December 2012.
- ^ a b Duffy, Jamie (December 2, 2008). "N.J. debutantes prepare for International Debutante Ball". New Jersey On-Line. Retrieved September 8, 2010.
- ^ Schappell, Elissa. "Better Off Deb Scenes from the biggest coming-out party of the year". New York Magazine. Retrieved 20 August 2013.
- ^ TV, AFP. "Glitz and glamour at New York's Debutante Ball". AFP. Retrieved 30 October 2013.
- ^ Green, Stephanie. "Cowboys Catch Debs Ball: N.Y. Scene". Bloomberg. Retrieved 13 May 2013.
- ^ "The International Debutante Ball at the Waldorf-Astoria hotel in New York". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 13 November 2012.
- ^ a b Jones, Finn-Olaf. "The New Guard of New York Debutantes". Gotham Magazine. Retrieved 7 December 2012.
- ^ Uhovski, Valentine. "At Waldorf, a Ball With Belles and Whistles". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 4 December 2012.
- ^ Cohen, Stefanie. "Glove affair At the biannual debutante ball, these glamour girls will be introduced to society". New York Post. Retrieved 18 December 2012.
- ^ Telegraph, The. "The International Debutante Ball at the Waldorf-Astoria hotel in New York". The Telegraph UK. Retrieved 3 February 2013.
- ^ a b c Foderaro, Lisa W. (December 30, 2008). "Glamour Still Rules, but With Fewer Debutantes". The New York Times. Retrieved September 8, 2010.
- ^ Says, Suzy. "Debutantes from 19 nations take a bow at the Waldorf". Palm Beach Daily News. Retrieved 27 November 2013.
- ^ a b Schlegel, Kimberly (2004). The Pleasure Of Your Company: Entertaining in High Style. Gibbs Smith. p. 192.
- ^ Muneer, Abbey H. "The 56th Annual International Debutante Ball: Thirty Women Bow". Liberty News Online. Retrieved 26 November 2012.
- ^ Konigsberg, Eric. "Gowns, Hair Spray and the Texas Dip: Debutante Season". New York Times. Retrieved 6 October 2013.
- ^ a b c d Columbia, David Patrick (2006). "The 52nd International Debutante Ball and dinner dance". New York Social Diary. Retrieved September 8, 2010.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|coauthors=ignored (|author=suggested) (help) - ^ "Sisis Ururenkelin präsentiert Milchzahn der Kaiserin". Die Presse. Retrieved 16 May 2013.
- ^ Columbia, David Patrick. "The Ball". New York Social Diary. Retrieved 9 November 2012.
- ^ Magazine, Time. "People: Jan. 4, 1963". Time Magazine. Retrieved 11 May 2013.
- ^ Freeman, Nate. "The Luckiest Girls in the World: White Tie Endures at the International Debutante Ball". New York Observer. Retrieved 16 October 2013.
- ^ Flint, Jessica. "International Debutantes Run Amok at the Waldorf-Astoria". Vanity Fair. Retrieved 21 August 2013.
- ^ Debutante Ball, International. "History of the debutante ball". International Debutante Ball. Retrieved 16 October 2013.
- ^ Morehouse, Ward (2001). Inside The Plaza: An Intimate Portrait of the Ultimate Hotel. Applause Theatre Books Publishers. p. 142. ISBN 1557834687.
- ^ Kavaler, Lucy. "The Private World Of High Society: Its Rules And Rituals [Paperback]". Literary Licensing, LLC. Retrieved 10 August 2013.