Friends of the Domaine de Chantilly (FODC) held an elegant gala dinner on Friday, September 7, 2018 celebrating Chantilly’s long-standing equestrian heritage. The event was set in the Great Stables, an eighteenth-century architectural masterpiece, and transported guests back to the splendor of the days of Prince Louis-Henri de Bourbon-Condé who commissioned this “palace for horses.”
This exceptional evening was held under the high patronage of His Highness the Aga Khan, President of the Foundation for the Preservation and Development of the Domaine de Chantilly, and Xavier Darcos, Chancellor of the Institut de France. It was presided by Prince Amyn Aga Khan, Chairman of the Board of Directors of FODC, and co-chaired by Maryvonne Pinault and Princess Zahra Aga Khan, who brought together a prestigious Honorary Committee of philanthropists, arts enthusiasts, and equestrian aficionados.
- Great Stables of Chantilly
- Princess Zahra Aga Khan, Prince Amyn Aga Khan and Maryvonne Pinault
The festivities began with an outdoor reception in the impressive courtyard at the center of the Great Stables. Guests enjoyed the famous champagne “La Cuvée” provided by Champagne Laurent-Perrier and served from magnum bottles, all the while surrounded by a picturesque décor created by the talented Eric Chauvin. Many of the guests took a moment to pose for a picture in front of a vibrant flower display.
- Guyonne de Montjou, Jérémie Delecourt, Nathalie and Arnaud Brunel
- Hélène Faracci, Nicole Guénant, Pascal Faracci, Pierre Guénant and Frédéric Engerer
- Count and Countess de Pracomtal
- Iouliana Bono, Brigitte Smadja, Franck Bacuzzi and Carina Obadia
- Count and Countess Edouard de Boisgelin
- Champagne Laurent-Perrier’s “La Cuvée”
- Cole Harrell and Ann Nitze
- Aleksandar Le Comte, Michail Quinto, Mr. and Mrs. Assem Alatassi
- Nicole Daskalakis and Adèle de Picciotto
- Mathieu Legars and Noemie Deschamps
- Barbara Michèle and Pascal Ravery
- Members of Chantilly’s Equestrian Company strolling about during cocktails
As the sky darkened, the sound of trumpets heralded the evening’s main program and beckoned the guests towards the central pavilion dominated by a 28 meter high dome. In front of an ornately sculpted fountain marking the construction of the Great Stables, Prince Amyn Aga Khan, Maryvonne Pinault and Princess Zahra Aga Khan extended an official welcome, highlighted the achievements of Friends of the Domaine de Chantilly, and expressed their gratitude to everyone for their unwavering support.
- Musicians in the Courtyard
- Nicolas and Celia Cattelain
- Mr. and Mrs. Philip Lybeck
- Prince and Princess Antoine de Broglie
- Bernard and Almine Ruiz-Picasso
- Princess Zahra Aga Khan speaking about the Great Stables
After their warm remarks, they introduced the special performance by Chantilly’s own renowned equestrian company which was founded in 1984 by Yves Bienaimé and is now overseen by his daughter Sophie. The riders along with the horses and the donkeys entertained the impressed crowd with their graceful horsemanship and balletic skill.
Guests were then invited to enter the Great Stables’ western wing, a magnificent room of monumental proportions featuring an eighteenth century décor, where a sumptuous dinner was served. Thanks once again to Eric Chauvin’s boundless imagination, foliage draped artfully from the walls and the tables were festooned with beautiful centerpieces composed of baskets of wildflowers aside beautiful tableware supplied by Maison Options.
- Caroline Robin-Mariéton, Countess Diane de Dampierre, Bertrand Chardon and Count Olivier de Dampierre
- Jérôme de Boisseson, Adélaïde de Clermont-Tonnerre and Laurent Delpech
- Prince Mubarak Al Sabah
- Eric and Stéphanie Meneux de Nonancourt
- Eric Woerth and Serge Proutchenko
Frédéric Anton, celebrated three Michelin star chef, and Guy Krenzer, Creative Director of Lenôtre, revived traditional dishes for the menu which were accompanied by two iconic Grand Cru Bordeaux wines, Château Canon and Château Rauzan-Ségla, generously donated by Alain and Gérard Wertheimer. Dessert was paired with a delectable Sauternes from Château Rieussec provided by the Domaines Barons de Rothschild (Lafite).
- Count Louis-Jean de Nicolaÿ, Maryvonne Pinault and Gérard Lavergne
- Florence Woerth and Xavier Darcos
- Pedro Corrêa do Lago, Katharine Rayner and George Farias
- Betty Eveillard, Nancy Pedot and Jacques Bouhet
- Serge Lepeltier, Marie-Claire Daveu and Patrice de Lanversin
- Hervé Aaron and Arielle de La Mettrie
- Guy Krenzer and Frédéric Anton
- Florence Boucheron, Count Hélie de Ganay and Baroness Carole de Cabrol
- Hervé Van der Straeten and Duchess Sophie de Wurttemberg
- Pavel Smutny, Marcia Fuller French, Prince Amyn Aga Khan and Laure Darcos
- Pamela Royall, James Reginato and Elizabeth Locke
- HSH Prince Wolkonsky and Countess Rodolphe de Causans
- Becca Cason Thrash and Marquis de Chaumont Quitry
- Château Canon
- Ingrid Schmidt, Aigle Arend Hasper, Christopher Byrne
- André Dunstetter and Nicole Garnier
All throughout dinner, impromptu performances by actors, musicians, and artists dressed in eighteenth-century period regalia surprised guests and added a spark of cheer and merriment.
After the superb dinner, guests were ushered once again to the main courtyard which had been transformed into the scene of an outdoor flower market. Ladies (and many of the gentlemen) were treated to lavish bouquets of flowers of their own choosing in souvenir of an unforgettable evening at Chantilly.
- Guests following a candle-lit path through the Courtyard
- Scene of a traditional flower market recreated by Eric Chauvin
- Françoise and Xavier Guerrand-Hermès, Baroness Bernard d’Anglejan Chatillon
- Baron and Baroness Xavier de La Chapelle
- Flower bouquets for guests
- Catherine and George R. Cary III
- François Lafon and Maryvonne Pinault
- Alexandra Prokaki, Peter Lee and Luziah Hennessy
- François and Valérie de Saint Pierre
- Pierre Champenois and Françoise Propper
- Mr. and Mrs. Laurent Benoit
- Iouliana Bono, Olivier and Caroline Robin-Mariéton
- Jean-Pierre and Donatienne Selz
- Francina and Emilio Ferré
Several members of Friends of the Domaine de Chantilly’s Board of Directors were present and shared their enthusiasm: Nathalie Brunel, Betty Eveillard, Alexis Gregory, Pierre Guénant, Henri Loyrette, James Marlas, Nazlin Pepermintwala, and Daniel Thierry.
- Prince Amyn Aga Khan and Daniel Thierry
- HRH Princess Béatrice de Bourbon des Deux Siciles, Alexis Gregory, Sir Richard Hitt
- James Marlas and Marie Nugent-Head Marlas
- Nazlin Pepermintwala
- Henri Loyrette and Renaud Donnedieu de Vabres
Many members of the Honorary Committee, whose support was invaluable to the event, were also in attendance: Mr. and Mrs. Christian Baillet, Count and Countess Edouard de Boisgelin, Count and Countess Rodolphe de Causans, Mr. and Mrs. Bertrand Chardon, Christopher Forbes, Colonel and Mrs. Ghislain Houzel, Viscount and Viscountess Jean d’Indy, Christian Langlois-Meurinne, Mrs. Jean-François Méjanès, Stéphanie Meneux de Nonancourt, Mrs. William Nitze, Marquis de Pracomtal, and Mr. and Mrs. Alain de Royer Dupré. Committee members who could not be present in person sent their best wishes for a successful evening: Winfried Engelbrecht-Bresges, Cina Alexander Forgason, Mr. and Mrs. John Magnier, Baron Edouard de Rothschild and His Highness Maharaja Sawai Padmanabh Singh of Jaipur.
- Joëlle Chapelon and Christian Baillet
- Irène Chardon
- Marquis de Pracomtal
- Viscount and Viscountess Jean d’Indy
- Christian Langlois-Meurinne and Dominique Arpels
- Christopher Forbes and Max Blumberg
- Colonel Ghislain Houzel, Nathalie Brunel and Diane Houzel
- Bertrand Chardon, Donna Patricia Aldobrandini and Marquis de Baudry d’Asson
This extraordinary soirée was attended by 300 distinguished guests and loyal benefactors from around the world, from Houston to Hong Kong, whose generosity will support the renovation of the Great Stables.
- Caroline Whitman and Marcia Fuller French
- Aymon Brunel, Daria Botín, Milana and Maxime Gaignault, Sumaiya Daredia and Zeeshan Feerasta
- TSH Prince and Princess d’Arenberg, TRH Prince and Princess Michel de France
- Angelronda Lee and Robert Lee
- Ariane Dandois, Bruno Roger and Ondine de Rothschild
- Mathieu Gallet, Thaddaeus Ropac and Pierre Pelegry
- Tracey Amon and Luis Eulalio Vidigal
- Duchess d’Audiffret Pasquier
- Alain Boucheron
- Mrs. Jean-François Méjanès and Duchess de Lorge
- Othman Benjelloun and Dr. Leila Mezian Benjelloun
- Carole and François Rochas
- Dr. Susan Kendall
- Nicolas Joly, Véronique and Louis-Antoine Prat
- Manuel Camelo, Anne-Claude Crémieux and Patricia Kim
- Nicole Guinet, Jean-Marie Eveillard and Joëlle de Fouchier
Prestigious brands such as Kering, Boucheron, Brioni, Château Latour, Sotheby’s, and Van Cleef & Arpels also showed their support by inviting prominent guests to their tables.
- Paul Guyot-Sionnest and Floriane de Saint-Pierre
- Florent Bonadei, Shala Sluijser and Deborah Lennon
- François Evenat, Isabelle Rocca Evenat and Jean-Luc Costes
- Roland Coiffe and Angela Beckh-Bacchetta
- Sabine de Gunzburg and Nazanine Ravaï
- Olivia Fournet-Pinault, Florence Rogers and Charlotte Fournet-Pinault
- Sabina Hajiyeva and Vincent Perchey
This gala evening demonstrated how the Great Stables are a symbol of Chantilly’s rich and unique equestrian heritage. Starting in 1836, horse racing became a cherished tradition with prominent races such as the Prix du Jockey Club and Prix de Diane taking place in the adjacent racecourse and attracting tens of thousands of spectators every year. For more than thirty years, the Great Stables’ equestrian troop has been performing shows beneath the dome in front of enthralled crowds, while the Museum of the Horse located in the eastern wing chronicles the fascinating history of this captivating animal.
Due to the significance of Chantilly’s equestrian culture, Friends of the Domaine de Chantilly chose to focus its efforts this year on the preservation of the Great Stables, a spectacular and singular structure. The proceeds raised from this gala event will help fund its renovation, ensuring that Chantilly remains France’s “Capital of the Horse.” We would like to express our gratitude to all those who generously and enthusiastically supported this initiative.
- Baron and Baroness Philippe de Fontenay, Jean Solanet
- Caroline Pigozzi, Charles Rochat and Hélène Fustier
- Katrin and Eric Le Maire
- Colombe Brunel and Olivier Kaempfer
- Marquis and Marquise de Nicolaÿ
- Anne-Hélène Decaux and Mario Tavella
- Princess Zahra Aga Khan and Prince Amyn Aga Khan
- Prince and Princess Alexandre Poniatowski
- Jane Aaron Bobrow and The Honorable Dennis Kloske
- Guests walking through the East Wing
Friends of the Domaine de Chantilly would also like to acknowledge the many partners and sponsors whose tremendous contributions made possible this special evening.
Photos by Luc Castel and Bruno Cohen