Governors glitz, glamour

At 9:15, muffled applause rose up from the audience below.

In the Kodak Theatre’s grand ballroom, hundreds of wait staff in trademark Wolfgang Puck black Nehru jackets stood at the ready. Ten thousand roses bloomed in hundreds of towering centerpieces. The orchestra rotated, playing “April in Paris,” “World on a String.”

The ceiling was hung with chandeliers. “This is a modern-day palace with a touch of Versailles,” said Cheryl Cecchetto of Sequoia Productions, which produced the Governors Ball following the Academy Awards.

And then came the guests. The glitz, the glamour. The chiffon, the taffeta, the tuxes. Ted Turner. Sean Connery. Oprah Winfrey sashayed in with her own security detail. And Robin Williams held forth outside. He stroked the arm of a woman in a furry jacket. “Hello, kitty,” he said.

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‘This is the ultimate night for people

who have lived so long in the shadows.’

Chris Pirrotta, “The Return of the King” aficionado at a party for 1,500 fans

-- Hilary E. MacGregor