Previous editions of the fashion brand and media company’s collaborative party have asked guests to come as Elizabeth Taylor, Princess Diana, and Uma Thurman’s Mia Wallace from Pulp Fiction. For Unemployed’s co-founders Cecile Winkler and Sophie Tabet, the magic lies in seeing how everyone makes the theme their own. “There is nothing more fun than finding yourself in a room where everyone is dressed up as that one thing, but they’re doing it in a different way,” Winkler told Vogue. “It brings you together. And it feels so absurd. You lose your friends because everyone looks the same.”
And with a legacy as celebrated as Dolly’s, there was plenty of room for interpretation. Some, including Rita Ora, opted for classic Tennessee Tuxedoes in the form of double denim, while others channeled her iconic 1978 Playboy cover. Then there were the more imaginative takes, like Salvador ‘Dolly’ and even a pair of sheep brought to life by Saltburn actor Archie Madekwe and Dorian Grinspan. It took a moment for people to realize that the pair were referencing Dolly, the world’s first cloned sheep from back in 1996, famously named after the chart-topper.
No Dolly wig or prosthetic boobs? No problem. Some of the night’s most memorable looks were improvised. One resourceful guest made do with a powdered barrister’s wig, perhaps left over from a previous Halloween costume, while others stuffed balloons of varying sizes down their t-shirts.
As word traveled across the city about the buzzy party, the line outside wrapped around the block well past 1 a.m., while inside, Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” sent the dance floor into a frenzy, followed by a string of Dolly’s greatest hits that kept the momentum going. According to The Frankie Shop founder Gaëlle Drevet, her philosophy for the night was simple: “Life is short. Have fun with it.” And judging by the crowd, no one needed to be told twice.
