She'll be the belle of the debutantes ball! Inside Kyra Kennedy's fairytale couture dress fitting at Christian Dior in Paris
- Kyra is the daughter of Robert Kennedy Jr, and the great niece of the late US president John F. Kennedy
- The teen and her family were left reeling after her mother committed suicide in May 2012
By Afp Reporter
|
At Christian Dior in Paris, Kyra Kennedy, great niece of the late US president John F. Kennedy, carefully descends a grand staircase in a powder blue couture dress and towering heels.
The 18-year-old has just finished her final dress fitting before Saturday's Debutantes Ball, one of the social events of the year at which high society meets haute couture.
The glittering event will see 20 hand-picked 'debutantes' dance, dine and network the night away in dresses loaned by some of Paris's most famous couture houses.
Fairytale moment: Kyra Kennedy, great niece of late President John F. Kennedy and daughter of Robert Kennedy Jr, descends the stairs at Dior in Paris as she tries on her new dress ahead of the Debutantes Ball
High society meets haute couture: The 18-year-old has just finished her final dress fitting before Saturday's Debutantes Ball, one of the social events of the year
Swish! Kyra, an aspiring fashion designer, admitted it was her first time wearing haute couture
Lord George Porchester whose family owns Highclere Castle, the setting for the hit television series 'Downton Abbey', has also been invited along with Kyra's father Robert Kennedy Jr -- the son of the slain president's brother Robert, who was also assassinated.
'It's my first time wearing haute couture so that's really exciting, and I'm obsessed by the colour,' Kyra, an aspiring fashion designer, told AFP.
'It's my first time wearing haute couture so that's really exciting, and I'm obsessed by the colour'
Others taking part include British royal Lady Amelia Windsor, the granddaughter of one of Queen Elizabeth II's cousins, Francesca Packer Barham, granddaughter of Australian media tycoon Kerry Packer and Romy David, daughter of Seinfeld creator Larry David.
From Asia, there will be Akshita
Bhanjdeo of India's Bhanja dynasty, Filipino 'It girl' Monica Urquijo
Zobel, and Rebecca Eu, the Canberra-based daughter of a Chinese
healthcare company chief.
Now in her 21st year organising the ball,
Frenchwoman Ophelie Renouard makes no secret of her quest to track down
as many big names as possible.
Special moment: Kyra smiles during her dress fitting, which took place on Wednesday
In another publicity coup this year, she has secured the presence of London taxi driver's daughter Lauren Marbe.
The 17-year-old made headlines recently when she notched up an IQ test score of 161, one point higher than Einstein.
'They are not interested in finding a husband, they are too young'
'I
read about her in the newspapers and so I phoned her up and she said
'it is not my world but if you invite me I will come',' Renouard said.
The
event at the Automobile Club of France in Paris is based on the
debutantes balls that were once an established part of the British upper
class's social calendar.
These launched well-born young women into society and -- with luck -- also introduced them to a potential husband.
But
the balls started to fall out of favour in the late 1950s after Queen
Elizabeth abolished the practice of the debutantes also being presented
at court.
Perfect fit: A member of the atelier staff makes a last-minute adjustment to Kyra's gown
Ready for the ball: Kyra takes a twirl in the finished dress and matching towering heels
In recent decades, they have been reinvented as glittering fundraisers with the emphasis on philanthropy and contact building rather than finding a husband.
'Every January we sit down and go through the files to see who we want. David Bowie's daughter, I'm waiting for her to grow up'
Among the new
generation of balls, Renouard's alone offers participants the chance to
borrow a haute couture dress for the night.
'They are not interested in finding a husband, they are too young,' she said.
'What they prefer is the dress, because even if they are privileged they have never been to a haute couture house.'
In previous years 'Le Bal' has attracted the daughters of European aristocracy as well as Hollywood A-listers such as Demi Moore and Bruce Willis, Andie MacDowell, Clint Eastwood and Sylvester Stallone.
Donations are made direct by the debutantes' families to the Children of Asia charity which funds underprivileged girls through school in the Philippines, Cambodia and Vietnam.
Kyra pictured with her father at the wedding of Alec Baldwin and Hilaria Thomas in June 2012, just a month after the death of her mother (left) and with his girlfriend Cheryl Hines in Los Angeles in October 2012 (right)
Extended family: Kyra with Hines and her daughter Catherine Rose Young in September 2012
In the past decade Renouard has also been able to tap into the newfound wealth of countries such as China and India.
The ball now has a strong showing from Asia but Renouard says she still has to crack Russia.
'I'm not good on Russia. It's all about networks...,' she said.
As for next year and beyond, she has plenty more names in her sights.
'Every year in January we sit down and go through the files to see who we want. David Bowie's daughter, I'm waiting for her to grow up,' she said.
'I also want Bill Gates's daughter and I want more daughters of artists like Anish Kapoor,' she added.
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Comments (41)
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Those Kennedy genes are the strongest genes ever!! A hundred years from now, the descendants of this family, will probably still look the same.
perhaps it's the angle of the photographs but it makes her look a strange shape? and is she wearing tights or boots or very unusual shoes?!
Make a name for yourself, luv. Don't ride the coattails of your slimy family. Do something for the poor you little twit.
I bet she's got all kinds of opinions on saving the world already! Maybe she could give free healthcare to everybody once Obama has finished ruining it! Maybe she could double the number of people on Food Stamps and Social Security Disability just like Mr. Obama! Maybe she could rule by "Executive Order" to bypass congress too to ram her social adjenda down everyones throat too! The future is so bright for her!
Instead of several similar photos of this girl, I would have loved to have seen photos of the past attendees in their dresses DM.
Poor dear, .... I truly feel for her. She had a terrible time coping with her Mom's death, (Mary Richardson Kennedy .. by hanging) ...So what did daddy do? He forced this grieving 16 yr. old daughter, to live with his girl friend, Cheryl Hines, in California! Put your self in her place! She was 16 at the time, old enough to know what daddy, Bobby III, was up to. IMO ... Her Mom, Mary, should be with her now, sharing and enjoying these times with her! It will take some of us a long time to forgive Bobby Kennedy III, for his 'insensitivity' to say the least! I can't help but wonder who is 'playing' Mom to Kyra now? 'Would like a follow up, DM.
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Indie, My Town, United States, 1 day ago
dress is meh..they have ceated better however I find it remarkable how much Kyra looks like Caroline Kennedy