A Night of Elegance, Customs, and Skillfully Made Optics
By nightfall, focus turned to the eagerly awaited state banquet. According to BBC News, the White House went all out with around 100 prominent visitors, including Supreme Court justices, media figures, and business executives.
Herb velouté, ravioli with garden herbs, dover sole, and a beehive-shaped chocolate gô with a vanilla-bean démeux custard were all on the menu alone, which read like a fine dining fantasy.
What about the dress code? The most formal of all is a strictly white tie. This prepared the audience for a night in which appearances were as important as politics.
White’s Power and Its Message
Melania looked stunning in a pale couture gown for the white tie dinner, and earlier in the visit, Camilla showed up in a similarly eye-catching color scheme, igniting conversation about coordination.
According to The Times, “this cannot have been by accident: dressers and stylists on both sides of the Atlantic will have been briefed with outfit details before the event to ensure no clashing or (heaven forbid) replication.”
Reactions came in on the internet. “Why are all the women (queen, Melania and Crowley) wearing white?” a commenter on X wondered.
Through a different post on the platform, someone else conjectured, “Did Melania fail to confirm what color the Queen would wear today? That is the top focus for royal occasions, and disagreeing with the Queen is frowned upon.
