When Vogue coverage of a wedding kicks off by announcing that the bride and groom were able to secure a venue—the Palace of Versailles—that even Kim and Kanye couldn’t, you know the rest of the story is going to be deliciously over-the-top. The publication’s description of the wedding of Leslie Cohen Amon and Ronen Chichportich does not disappoint to this end, with every detail sounding more made up—in our wildest dreams—than the one before. Here, some of the most outlandish and magical moments to use as inspiration for your own wedding day or, more likely, as reason to cancel your budget-friendly festivities in favor of an elopement.
The Palace was their second-choice venue. The first was the Ancient Greek Theatre in Taormina, Italy, but this idea were foiled by some relatively insignificant event called the G7 Summit.
They didn’t use a wedding planner. Instead, they asked fashion show producers La Mode en Images to shape their big day. “They are not in the business of weddings, nor do they want to do weddings, but they kindly made an exception for me,” the bride says in a tone that Vogue describes as gracious, but which we can only imagine is meant to make us feel like the peons we are.
Giambattista Valli custom-made her dress. They’re friends, because obviously. “That customization included a 17th-century French boiserie–inspired needle-and-thread embroidery design on silk organza, subsequently embroidered with a Swarovski crystal ramage de fleurs d’oranger motif on the bodice and accompanied by a 16.5-foot train draped in silk chiffon,” reports Vogue. Same.
Their night-before event was a carnival at the Musée Rodin. The museum was privatized for the event, which included fair booths, a jukebox, pétanque, an oversize foosball table, food trucks, cotton candy and popcorn machines, a yogurt stand, a photo booth and detox concoctions from vegan juice bar Wild & The Moon.
The night-of involved distinctive “experiences” in each of the L’Orangerie’s three galleries. The Garden of Eden–themed ceremony was set up like a fashion show in one gallery. Afterward, all 400 guests moved to a second gallery for dinner at tables topped with nearly 100% custom-made details. The after-party was held in a third gallery and followed by a five-minute firework display.
“Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons began playing and the main doors opened to reveal a mock court of Versailles nobles in period costume, ushering in Leslie and Ronen—on horseback.” We don’t think this one requires comment.
The night was shut down by an uninvited guest. “At 4:00 a.m., we were kicked out because Putin was meeting President Macron in the Château later that morning!”
