‘Feud: Capote Vs. The Swans’: Zac Posen Breaks Down Those Masquerade Looks (PHOTOS)
Spoiler Alert
[Warning: The below contains MAJOR spoilers for Feud: Capote Vs. The Swans, Episode 3, “Masquerade 1966.”]
Feud: Capote Vs. The Swans brings the writer and his socialites together for a very special occasion in the season’s third episode, “Masquerade 1966,” as he hosts a black and white ball.
The event is based on a real party held over 50 years ago, and viewers are whisked into the excitement of it all through the Maysles brothers’ lens as the documentarians are the framing device capturing Capote’s (Tom Hollander) epic soiree behind the scenes. Similar to the black and white theme, much of the installment is also captured in the contrasting colors until the final moments when Capote’s mother (played by the entrancing Jessica Lange) takes to the dance floor, unveiling her showstopping black ensemble sure to rival all others seen in the minutes leading up to her reveal.
But these gorgeous ensembles aren’t just your average designs as fashion icon Zac Posen stepped into the metaphorical driver’s seat for this grand onscreen journey, helping put together the key looks for this event. “It started as a dinner with Gus [Van Sant], the director, who’s a good friend. He was location scouting, and then it led to a meeting with Lou [Eyrich] and then a by-chance run-in with Ryan [Murphy] on a food line at a dinner after an art exhibition,” Posen explains to TV Insider.
(Credit: FX)
“Ryan and I have wanted to work together for a long, long time, and he knew about the project and he said, ‘Let’s set up time to meet in a few weeks.’ And then I got a call that said, ‘Come to set.’ And I came to set and they were filming a scene with Calista [Flockhart] as Princess Lee Radziwill in the Kenneth Hair Salon.”
It was during this set visit that Posen was asked to present his concepts within a week and a half around Thanksgiving, so it was a quick turnaround. But the frocks fabulously worn by the show’s glamorous stars were anything but a rush job.
“I create a vision that works with Ryan, and then it is my job to present that to these actors,” Posen says. “And there the collaboration begins in the fitting process. After [more than] 25 years in fashion and working with many of these actors… that trust is built.” Despite having dressed many of the stars in the past, Posen points out, “This is an elevated costume version, but we treated it as a couture process, like a real fitting process with every detail where we start with a muslin and tweak it and move lines. That’s how I work with any client or customer.”
Still, he had to treat it “in a very quick, speedy time,” considering the circumstances of production. In the end, it all came together seamlessly onscreen. Below, Posen breaks down the finer details of the Swans’ masquerade looks from the episode.
Feud: Capote Vs. The Swans, New Episodes, Wednesdays, 10/9c, FX (Next day on Hulu)
Keeping Katharine Graham True to History
The first look Posen tackled for the episode was for Katharine Graham (Marin Ireland), who was Capote’s guest of honor at the event, and he wanted to keep The Washington Post publisher’s ensemble true to history for the most part. “I wanted to stay close to the historical [with] the construction.” In Posen’s version of the look, he says, “I gave her pockets. I thought a lady such as Katharine Graham would really have pockets.”
“And I gave a more streamlined shoulder. Originally, she was in a Balmain dress, and originally, her glasses were actually designed into her custom mask that held it on. And we tried that, but it didn’t work,” he admits of the trial and error process for making the mask. “That’s when it started. From there, it became a great collaboration between Lou and Ryan on a daily basis.”
Jessica Lange the Black Swan
The apparition of Capote’s mother, Lange appears in color during the episode’s final moments, further setting her apart from the other women showcased in the episode. “My dream come true,” Posen muses. Considering her ghostly presence, the designer says, “The inspiration of it was to do something that was from the teens, the ’20s, the ’30s, the ’40s up until the ’60s, all into one dress. Gelatin black sequins, feathers, jewels. I mean that she was what Ryan, Lou, and I chose as our Black Swan.”
According to Posen, the color versus black and white wasn’t something that was finalized until close to shooting. “When I first started it, they hadn’t fully decided whether they were going to do the episode in black and white,” Posen says. Knowing one way or the other was important though because “Camera is always essential.” This means Posen had to make certain considerations when picking out materials like “how a gold sequin looks versus a silver sequin, the mix of it, and the possibility that they could go into color.”
Babe's Befeathered Cloak & Mask
Similar to Katharine’s look, Posen wanted Babe Paley’s (Naomi Watts) to be somewhat true to history. “Babe’s dress, which was probably originally a Castillo dress, is pretty close to the original.” Posen reveals that in his research, he learned, “It was lined in red.” And so, “Whether it was going to be in black and white or color, I wanted Naomi to have those details.”
Her coat was changed as Posen says, “Originally she was wearing a fur coat. We evolved that into something grander.” Ultimately, it was a feathery cloak. The feather theme was carried through to her mask, which featured feathery eyelashes that may remind one of Holly Golightly’s (Audrey Hepburn) sleeping mask in Breakfast at Tiffany’s.
“Her original mask did not have the eyelashes,” Posen notes. “Originally, we wanted to make it all out of feathers. I was looking at the actual eye of a swan, and I took a little piece of black feather and wrapped it around, and it almost made fake lashes.”
Lee's Textured Look
It was easy for Posen to find references for Lee’s look since, he says, “She was probably the most photographed woman at the ball because she was actually having a good time.” When it came to creating her look, it was all about picking the right materials. “Her coat was similar, but it was originally like a white Cloquet, and here we did this embroidered daisy over metallic Cloquet,” Posen points out. “When you’re dealing in black and white reflection and different plain matte sheen, in-betweens and crystals are really important things that catch light in different ways and texture play.”
Slim's Shaded Styling
“In some places, creative liberty [was taken],” Posen explains. “It’s about an extended reality versus a full period piece.” That made room for some creativity with Slim Keith’s (Diane Lane) look as Posen reveals he referenced some of the other costumes for the character this season when fashioning her ball look. “Slim Keith was a fashion icon; I always think of her in a white shirt and trousers.”
It was those fashion staples of Slim’s that inspired her ball ensemble because there aren’t many reference photos of her from that period in time. “She was worldly. She wore pants. So I put her in men’s wide-leg tuxedo pants, high-waisted cummerbund.” While he didn’t opt for a white shirt, Posen put her in “this kimono-type, shoulder open sleeve, but you get that reference [of the white shirt].”
Slim’s hooded cape is supposed to convey that “some kind of hot air is coming into the room… And what I did do is she would be too cool as a person to probably wear a mask, so I put her in sunglasses.”
Ann's Astounding Headpiece
If Lange was the ball’s Black Swan, Demi Moore‘s Ann Woodward would have to be the White Swan who is cast aside. She crashes Capote’s ball for the sake of her son and is confronted for it. But despite the distress she experiences, she’s utterly flawless in an intricate headpiece inspired by the likes of Liz Taylor.
“Her headpiece and mask was one of the first pieces I made,” Posen shares. “Her crystal mesh was definitely the most expensive and luxurious item of a little piece in the whole costume assortment. It is literally an embroidered Russian tool net with real crystal grommets all over it. And I wanted to create something that had a shake to it.”
Posen also wanted the piece to have an armor-like quality. “The feathers and the plumage, it’s a mix of different feathers, silk, and tulle flowers that were dead stock from the mid-’60s. I wanted her to look like a beautiful, fragile creature that’s put on this strong Artemis-type helmet almost.” While most of the detail is in her headpiece, there’s also inspiration in her gown. “The dress had some hark backs to some great Audrey [Hepburn] empire dresses as well as some great Barbara Streisand looks. But quintessentially, it’s a true collaboration between me and Demi.”
C.Z.'s Bow Moment
Rounding out the looks is Chloë Sevigny‘s dramatic white gown paying homage to her character C.Z. Guest. Posen says, if you watch the back of her dress, “it’s a reference to C.Z.’s love of equestrian and horse riding. It’s supposed to look like a giant horse ribbon in the back. Originally she was in Mainbocher, which would’ve been kind of ’50s and strapless,” Posen explains. “The drape on the bottom of her skirt is like a gesture of a swan in whipped cream.”
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