27^th Annual InterContinental Miami Make-A-Wish Ball

Miami’s social season is back in full swing this year, the nasty C-word almost in remission — something to be truly grateful for, along with our community’s generous philanthropists who do good while looking great.

Case in point: The glamorous 27^th Annual InterContinental Miami Make-A-Wish Ball, held earlier this month, raised a record-breaking $5.4 million – yes, $5.4 million — for Make-A-Wish Southern Florida. The annual fundraiser is chaired by philanthropist Shareef Malnik, whom many of us know from his days holding court at The Forge — the fun and decadent restaurant/celeb haunt he owned that pretty much defined the 1990s in Miami Beach.

Malnik’s wife, the lovely actress and filmmaker Gabrielle Anwar – whose eye-opening 2016 documentary “Sexology” exploring female sexuality is on Amazon Prime Video, btw – brought her witty charm as Celebrity Emcee for the 11^thconsecutive year at the Ball. The British beauty slayed in an ethereal nude silk chiffon couture gown with bustier and laced back by Maria Lucia Hoban.

The “Supernature”-themed gala (a flora- and fauna-filled wonder conceptualized by Creative Director Maxwell Blandford) provided ultimate style gazing, with two of the best looks of the night going to Tatiana Teo and Ariel Penzer Milgroom. The philanthropist-stylistas both went the sustainable fashion route, choosing favorite gowns from their closets – Teo in sleek citrus yellow, accented by a sweet blinged Valentino gold metal chain bag, and Milgroom in a lushly printed Dennis Basso gown ca. 2016 with a jeweled headpiece.

The Ball’s entertainer was the legendary Diana Ross, who commanded the stage like the grande diva she is in her trademark lipstick red, her gown accompanied by clouds of matching red tulle – always a vision. We all sang along as Ms. Ross performed her classic hits, including “Stop, In the Name of Love,” “Baby Love,” and “Do You Know Where You’re Going To” — the latter the theme from “Mahogany,” one of our all-time favorite movies.

Coming soon: full gallery of the 27th Annual InterContinental Miami Make-A-Wish Ball to be published in SocialMiami’s SocialEyes column.

Opening Night of SIX at the Arsht Center

Broadway shows are always more fun, we think, when you’re sitting next to a Super Fan – whether they’re cerebral types who knowingly laugh at the subtleties of a pithy line, or extroverts who passionately, and frequently, shout out “Go, Girl!”, complete with fist-pumping body language.

Mr. D’Annunzio and I were seated next to one of those Super Fans – the “Go, Girl,” fist-pumping type — on opening night of SIX, the smash Broadway musical based on the six wives of England’s King Henry VIII, at the Arsht Center. On our other side, WPLG Local 10 Senior Political Reporter Michael Putney and his gracious wife Marta Putney – certainly not fist-pumpers but Super Fans nonetheless (it was Michael’s second time seeing the musical this season).

The high-energy production was the perfect way to kick off the fall lineup of the Arsht Center’s Broadway 2022-2023 Series, which continues with Hadestown (Dec. 6-11), Aladdin (Jan. 3-8), Wicked (Feb. 15 – March 5), My Fair Lady (March 28 – April 2), and Ain’t Too Proud – The Life and Times of the Temptations (May 9-14).

In the crowd of mostly tame looks – it was a school night, after all – we loved the relaxed elegance of power couple Ferne and Danny Toccin, both in classic, monochromatic looks. Ferne wore winter white separates by Toccin, the New York-based fashion brand owned by their son Michael Toccin and wife Alex Toccin; Danny wore navy Brunello Cucinelli and Brioni.

Funniest line of the night in this very well-done production went to Ann Boleyn, wife no. 2, who famously met her fate at the guillotine in 1536. Jane Seymour, wife no. 3, who died due to complications of childbirth, asked Ann: “What hurts more than a broken heart?” To which Ann replied: “A severed head.”

“Atlantis” Theme Party in Wynwood for Noelia Madiedo

How many people do you know who would come dressed in character if the theme were “Atlantis,” as in the mythical city that sank into the ocean in 9,600 B.C.?

If you’re sound healer Noelia Madiedo and you’re celebrating your 40 birthday with your inner circle of Creatives, the answer is: Everyone.

The glam posse at Madiedo’s Wywood studio – which was set-designed for the night by Latin Grammy Award winning art director Pedro Fajardo — included artists, models, gallerists, stylists, muses, and even a few fashion children, including Omar, 8, whom we met in the elevator, dressed in a Kelly green bodysuit that could have been his pajamas, taking photos of genetically blessed guests Pablo Costanzo and Antonio Jose Cuadra with their iPhone. Jewelry designer and tea ceremony mistress Tara Benemeleh wore a black Capezio leotard with handmade yellow and black feather accessories, jewelry from her Espiritutara accessories line, and sensible Prada shoes. She lent her Givenchy pendant necklace – a gift-to-self from a Paris trip — to her husband Jack Benemeleh, who DJed the party, to zhuzh up his all-black look.

The birthday girl had two costume changes – a fact that endears her to me all the more – beginning the night with a rhinestoned Kapok Tree-inspo Samauma bodysuit from Harmonia costumes that only someone with 2 percent body fat like she has should wear, and midway through the party emerging in a sequined midi dress with puff sleeves by hip Danish brand Rotate Birger Christensen. We’re still obsessing over this two-outfit aesthetic, which we’re determined to work into our style protocol, even if it means changing in the car, a la famed fashion journalist Anna Dello Russo.