Anthony DeWitt, Lizzie Asher, Casey Kohlberg, Mercedes de Guardiola, Michele Levbarg-Klein Rayden, Christina Senia, Clare Ngai ©BFA/Madison Voelkel
Young Friends of Save Venice Host “Murano Nights” Dinner In Lower Manhattan to Help Fund Venetian Art Restoration
Casey Kohlberg, Lizzie Asher, the Young Friends of Save Venice hosted Murano Nights, an intimate dinner at Casa Cipriani — newly opened in New York City’s landmark Battery-Maritime building — to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Save Venice. The dinner’s attendees included 50 of Save Venice’s fashionable younger supporters from art and fashion to film and media for a cocktail hour, ballet performance by dancers from the Brooklyn Ballet, and dinner. Attire was billed as ‘Glittering Cocktail’, as a nod to the Murano Glass which lends its name to the theme.
Hosted by Casey Kohlberg, notable guests included: Save Venice Young Friends Chair Lizzie Asher; Patina Milier, Serena Goh, Krystal Bick, Amir Taghi, Denise Baca, Tai Cheng, Daniel Kibblesmith, Jennifer Wright, Savannah Engel, Alyson Cafiero, Laura Day Webb, Timo Weiland, Mercedes de Guardiola, Clare Ngai, Daniel Howard, Aerin Glazer, Irina Eicke-Krylova, and Maximilian Eicke.
The menu featured fall fare of risotto with saffron and dover sole with baby artichokes, grown on the Venetian island of Torcello where Save Venice is currently restoring the Basilica of Santa Maria Assunta. Proceeds from the evening helped fund this restoration.
No detail was left uncurated as evidenced by the cocktail list of the evening that featured the classic Cipriani Bellini and a white Negroni, playing on the glass blown theme of Murano, with a wine pairing menu provided by Kobrand Wines and Spirits during dinner.
Guests enjoyed a performance by the Brooklyn Ballet titled Sonic Relief, aka You Had To Be There, before sitting for dinner. The piece by New Orleans-born composer Malcom Parson features a gliding ebb and flow between the sound; the dancers’ movement is reminiscent of a midnight gondola ride through the canals of Venice. Choreographed by Lynn Parkerson, founding Artistic Director of the Brooklyn Ballet, the performance featured dancers Audrey Borst, James “Floats” Fable, Miku Kawamura, Christine Sawyer, Ladell “Ocean” Thomas.
Remarks by host Casey Kohlberg and Young Friend Chair Lizzie Asher closed out the evening. Gift bags included items from BONBONWHIMS, Campari, PatBo, Dior, covid-friendly Save Venice masks, and mini bottles of olive oil from the hostess’ family home in Woodside, California.
About Save Venice & The 50 x 50 Initiative: On the occasion of the 50th Anniversary of Save Venice, the leading American nonprofit organization dedicated to preserving the artistic heritage of Venice, commemorative events are being organized worldwide to support important restorations of masterworks of Venetian art and architecture. The Young Friends of Save Venice are an energetic group of young professionals aged 39 and younger who share dual passions for art and preservation in Venice. Initially established in the early 1990s, the group was responsible for sponsoring specific restoration projects and for the growth of what is today known as Un Ballo in Maschera, held annually in New York.
