All the stars seemed to align to bring on our best Tatler Ball yet
It is gratifying to reflect on our 22nd Anniversary Tatler Ball, held last November 18, 2023, at the Grand Ballroom of Shangri-La The Fort. To see months of work and planning come to life so beautifully is both a blessing and a silent cheer of joy.
This Tatler Ball, 300 people gathered for an evening’s celebration to raise funds for an extremely worthy cause. This is the magic number of guests; it allows us to invite mindfully selected people and keep to a number that can be considered exclusive.
There were a few changes this year to spice things up. We used the ballroom foyer as the photo vignette area and transferred our cocktails to the first one-third of the function space. In this “Tatler Lounge”, we featured a lovely large fountain adorned with lush plants and flowers, a display area for our auction items and comfortable sofas and armchairs grouped with coffee tables and cocktail tables. One accessed the inner dinner space by walking through the double curtains we installed. All this was done so well by Cyndi Fernandez-Beltran of Moss Manila. We got so many favourable comments from guests on our new layout!
In case you missed it: Tatler Ball Awardees 2023: Maria Ressa, Dolly de Leon, and Kenneth Cobonpue
An initiative like ours is greatly helped by having stellar partners. Our headline partner was Tiffany & Co, the iconic jewellery house, which was a pleasure to work with. They had a very chic photo vignette in the foyer that evening. Our Gold partner was Lexus, the automotive powerhouse, plus we had ideal supporting partners in Belo, Eluria, HSBC, Moet Hennessy, Shangri-La The Fort, and Bacchus Epicerie.
Let’s talk about the cause we selected as our beneficiary this year. Project Inclusion Network is a non-profit organisation that aims to build a nation where the potential of Persons with Disability is realised. When Persons with Disability have access to opportunities to participate and productively contribute to their communities actively, we build an inclusive and barrier-free Philippines. At the Ball with us were its former chair, Em Aglipay Villar and board member, Karen Davila. All our fundraising efforts at this Tatler Ball would be for the Project Inclusion Network. The donations are voluntary from our guests, plus what we raise in our charity auction and Tatler’s cash donation. One hundred per cent of all donations are made in the beneficiary’s name and go entirely to them.
I am often asked how we plan the Ball and how long before the date we prepare. It takes five to six months of intense and confidential planning, with focus and vision and much help from a few trusted members of the Tatler team and a group of suppliers we have come to rely upon through the last 22 years. It all starts with an idea. What was the underlying theme this year? For 2023, we wanted it to have a slight Moroccan touch. This was carried in the print we used for the invitation envelopes, in our food at dinner as a design inspiration for our decoration, and in our Ball booklets placed in each guest’s place setting.
The programme started with my welcome remarks as Tatler Philippines’ managing director. I shared vital facts about the business, profusely thanked our partners and introduced Project Inclusion Network. As we write this, we are happy to say we raised PHP 17,310,000! This is beyond our goal of PHP 11,250,000 and is a testament to how powerful good intentions and generosity can result in an outpouring of giving.
Tatler’s charity auction started mid-meal, where five desirable auction lots were offered for public bidding. Our fantastic auctioneers for the evening were Tim Yap, Stephanie Zubiri and Small Laude. These five lots were auctioned: a vibrant artwork by Raffy Napay donated by Senator Mark Villar and wife, Em Aglipay Villar; a four-night stay in Luxe Nomad’s The Vale Rusutsu in Hokkaido; a Reversa One Monoface Jaeger-LeCoultre ladies watch donated by Lucerne; an Amanpulo Escape with Jewelmer that includes a three-night stay in Amanpulo with a visit to the Pearl Farm and a Jewelmer pendant; and another artwork titled, Downfall Eclipse, by Jigger Cruz donated by Léon Gallery.
