Radhika Jones isn’t exactly keeping a low profile during her first Oscar Week. The Vanity Fair editor in chief, who penned her first editor’s letter in the magazine’s March issue, hosted a Women in Hollywood celebration on Thursday night with Ava DuVernay.
The fete, which was billed as a joint Lancome Paris event, has been an annual happening during the Oscar Week whirl, but in the past the only editorial staffer to host it was executive West Coast editor Krista Smith. Smith was in attendance, as was chief business officer Chris Mitchell.
While it was hard to find Jones in the crowd at Soho House West Hollywood, she certainly would have stood out had the rooftop party not been packed to the gills. She was sporting a bright orange cold shoulder halter-necked dress with lace and ruched detailing, a party dress if there ever was one, and a far cry from what she wore on her first day in the office.
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Though reporters were informed ahead of time that Jones would not be doing interviews, the rest of the stars in attendance let loose. That included Zendaya, who came with her stylist Law Roach, Alessandra Ambrosio, Sophia Amoruso, Anna Baryshnikov, Angela Bassett, Selma Blair, Madeline Brewer, Connie Britton, Nina Dobrev, Liz Goldwyn, Heather Graham, Danai Gurira, Kathryn Hahn, Alana Haim, Chelsea Handler, Jessica Hart, Marianna Hewitt, Taylor Hill, Gaby Hoffman, Sarah Hyland, Paris Jackson, Poppy Jamie, Caitlyn Jenner, January Jones, Rashida Jones, Mindy Kaling, Joe Keery, Keegan-Michael Key, Chloe Kim, Michael Patrick King, Lola Kirke, Pom Klementieff, Zoe Kravitz, , Amy Landecker, Judith Light, Janelle Monae, Michelle Monaghan, Maika Monroe, Shameik Moore, Laura Mulleavy, Kumail Nanjiani and Emily V. Gordon, Hari Nef, Petra Nemcova, Aubrey Plaza, Whitney Port, Andrea Riseborough, Angela Serafyan, Jane Seymour, Alia Shawkat, Molly Sims, Mena Suvari, Aisha Tyler and Ali Wong.
“I feel like dancing,” said actor Shameik Moore, who first posed with Tessa Thompson, then Serayah McNeill, before offering to fetch Tracee Ellis Ross a glass of rosé from the bar.
Ross and Rita Wilson had paused in the hallway to take a selfie together, after which Ross declared it “a busy week” because she was also shooting “Black-ish.” She spent most of her time chatting with several activists in the mix, but said she wanted to meet Jones before she left. Ronan Farrow was also in the crowd chatting with actress Isabelle Fuhrman.
Graydon Carter’s imprimatur was still felt at the party, which was decorated with photographs from the Hollywood issue, his last. Copies were strewn around the party, as were past issues featuring the triple-gatefold covers shot by Annie Leibovitz. Although Jones will also host the post-Oscar party on Sunday, the event, much like the March issue, will still bear Carter’s touch, as the venue between the Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts and the historic Beverly Hills Post Office was locked in months, if not years, before.