Every Met Gala has a moment. This one had several. The theme, Costume Art, and its dress code, Fashion Is Art, gave the carpet a brief so open that anything went. And anything is what happened.
Tyla
Third Met Gala. Third viral moment. The South African singer arrived in a custom Valentino look by Alessandro Michele that can only be described as a peacock in evening wear. A satin bleu paon skirt with a deep slit, a tulle bodice draped in diamond chains, silver sequin fringes catching every flash on the steps. Tyla said the look was inspired by peacocks. The mermaid-curl hair and body shimmer backed that up completely. Three for three on the Met steps. The woman does not miss.
Bad Bunny
The most jaw-dropping arrival of the night came from a face, not a dress. Bad Bunny, 32, walked the carpet looking like a man in his eighties. Grey hair, full white beard, bushy eyebrows, cane. The prosthetics were created by Mike Marino, the artist behind Heidi Klum's most iconic Halloween transformations, who hand-sculpted every wrinkle after a conversation with Benito about how time would actually age his face. The look directly engaged the aging body section of the Costume Art exhibition. He wore a custom black Zara tuxedo with an oversized pussy-bow tie referencing Charles James's 1947 Bustle gown from the Met's own collection. Some accused him of copying The Weeknd. He didn't. He one-upped it.
Beyoncé
A decade since her last Met appearance. Her return as co-chair was the most anticipated arrival of the night, and she delivered a look that will be referenced for years. An Olivier Rousteing-designed diamond skeleton gown mapping the human anatomy in crystals, from ribcage to fingertips, topped with a feathered opera coat that took five people to carry up the stairs. "It's designed by Olivier Rousteing, somebody who has been so loyal to me," she told Lala Anthony on the livestream. The bigger story may be what the look signals: Cowboy Carter is over. With Act III rumours swirling, this was rock and roll. A new era of Bey is here. She was joined by Jay-Z and 14-year-old Blue Ivy, making her Met debut in Balenciaga.
Madonna
Madonna doesn't do subtle. A black Saint Laurent satin slip dress topped with a translucent violet organza cape so large it required seven female attendants in matching sheer blindfolds to carry its sails up the stairs. On her head, a top hat resembling a pirate ship with mast and sails. In her hand, a brass trumpet. Inspired by Leonora Carrington's The Temptation of St. Anthony, Fragment II. Nobody does theatrical like her.
Rihanna
Arrived after 9pm, as is tradition, and shut the whole thing down. A sculptural Maison Margiela couture gown inspired by medieval architecture, featuring a hooded cape and a bodice creating a dress-within-a-dress illusion, shimmering like liquid metal. Over 115,000 jewels. A$AP Rocky beside her in pink Chanel. The final major arrival. The only one that mattered.
Also Worth Your Time
Kylie Jenner in Schiaparelli: nude illusion corset with sculpted nipples, bleached brows, 11,000 hours of embroidery, 10,000 baroque pearls. The body as canvas, taken literally.
Doja Cat in Saint Laurent silicone: a Grecian dress made from silicone, not silk. Classical shape, subversive material. Only Doja.
Sabrina Carpenter in Dior: a dress constructed from filmstrips of the 1954 movie Sabrina. Cinema as fabric.
Teyana Taylor in Tom Ford: head-to-toe metallic fringe, every strand like an icicle. Simple concept, maximum impact.
Stevie Nicks: Met Gala debut at 77. Blue velvet. Steampunk meets witchy popstar. Finally.