The nonprofit collective We the Women held a wake — but it was all in good humor
Words by MARIE LOOK
Performing arts collective We the Women — founded in Los Angeles by Nathalie Love and Samantha Ressler — assembled a bevy of talented friends in the Masonic Lodge at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery on Thursday, Jan. 16, for The Wake for 2019, an immersive, live theater experience.
Cellist Katt Newlon serenaded guests as they arrived, and musician Annie Trousseau kicked things off in dramatic fashion, with a processional into the lodge. Then partygoers such as Francis Ford Coppola, Gia Coppola, Harley Viera-Newton and Hallie Meyers-Shyer looked on, with copious laughter, as a slew of creatives poked fun at the many things that “died” over the past year.
Comedy writers Bess Kalb, Jocelyn Richard and Broti Gupta contributed the evening’s script, with Ayo Edebiri, Patti Harrison and Stacy Osei-Kuffour penning and performing their own “eulogies.” Saturday Night Live’s Chloe Fineman laid to rest the glass ceiling while actors Zoë Chao and Mishel Prada mourned, respectively, the demises of privacy and reproductive rights.
The Wake for 2019 also featured music arranged by Este Haim, who was joined on stage by Mereki, Miya Folick, Raphaelle, Alex Lilly, Biianco and Jen Furches to entertain the crowd with renditions of Britney Spears’ “Stronger,” Sarah McLachlan’s “I Will Remember You” and Joni Mitchell’s “The Circle Game.”
DJ Denise Hewitt spun at the after-party, attended by Ashlee Marie Preston, Lisa Love, Jane Moseley, Rainey Qualley, Kendall Conrad, Caroline Belhumeur and others, who enjoyed refreshments and dancing in addition to bites by Tacos 1986 and Dina’s Dumplings. Directed flawlessly by Maureen Bharoocha, the event was made possible by Goop, Vital Proteins, Spotify and Vince; with beverages by Gia Coppola Wine, Yola Mezcal and Sweet Reason; and flowers by Joseph Free.
Feature image: The women behind The Wake for 2019 event. Photo by Monica Henriquez/Girlgaze.
Jan. 22, 2020
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