Interior Design hall of fame architect and Broadway set decorator (“Hairspray,” “Legally Blonde,” “Dirty Rotten Scoundrels” and “The Rocky Horror Show”) David Rockwell was tapped to design the sets for the 81st Academy Awards show airing this Sunday, February 22rd.
David has just released some design sketches for his sets and tells us “We created a spatial and architectural solution for the 2009 Oscars that is based on storytelling, spectacle, and community. We wanted to use a surprising and dramatic integration of technology and movement to celebrate the awards ceremony, which has become one of the greatest shared rituals of our time.”
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David's storied career includes the design of the Kodak Theatre, home of the Academy Awards ceremony, stage sets and several hotels, including the recent redecoration of The Carlton on Madison Avenue. In honor of David's Oscar sets, The Carlton is offering a special Oscar Night rate of $199 complete with gourmet popcorn and optional in-room dining from Country restaurant.
The Carlton has tapped David’s friend Cindy Allen, editor in chief of Interior Design Magazine, to host a private Academy Awards viewing party at Country’s Champagne Lounge located inside the hotel. David’s sets are expected to showcase the Oscar’s “champagne popping” glory days, so the Rockwell-designed Champagne Lounge is a fitting choice for Cindy and her VIP fashion and design pals to watch the show and honor the success of their friend--David is the first architect to design the Oscars. Guests include Angel Sanchez, Fashion Designer, Yeohlee Teng, Fashion Designer, Vicente Wolf, Vicente Wolf Design, Stefan Beckman, Set Designer, Shamir Shah, Shamir Shah Design, and Paul Siskin, Siskin Valls Design, and more. Sounds like fun, too bad it's private!
Will you be watching the Academy Awards on Sunday? Click here to view my breakdown of the nominees for Best Art Direction and vote for who you think will win!
