Thursday night, the streets are busy and there’s a buzz in the air, as we put the final touches in place and hurtled towards go time. Months of planning, preparation and production finally coming to life.
To launch South Yarra’s new underground-playground (for grownups) Yugen, we assembled a collection of incredible women, and created something truly special. The crème of Melbourne society gathered with excitement, to explore the contemporary Japanese
bar and restaurant, that strikes the prefect balance between opulence and rusticity, located deep beneath the Capital Grand.
As guests arrived, it’s fair to say, we were making a scene. Heads were turning and camera’s
out, as pedestrians on the corner of Chapel Street and Toorak Road tried to comprehend the red carpet that morphed into a custom-made evening gown, wrapped around a stunning and extraordinarily talented violinist. Our girl Yena, played beautifully haunting pieces, that echoed dramatically through the iconic Melbourne crossroad.
As names were marked off, and guest poured in – expectations were high, and the standard had been set.Once entering the Yugen tea-hall, sake was served and a magnificent live-art exhibit, Holly, wore a full-body chandelier – a nod to things to come – and was perched high, as she subtly contorted to the relaxed background beats.
Photographs were taken at the freshly-picked and hand constructed, flower wall – that screamed, in brightly lit neon, YUGEN. This special feature highlighted that this was no ordinary launch party.
As we moved downstairs, our hostess, wearing a customised gold chain-link dress, inspired by the gold chain decor we’d soon discover – greeted us and presented a champagne tower to behold. A photo, a glass and a smile and guests were on their way, filled with anticipation…
And then an angel appeared. In what will be Yugen’s premier, semi-private dining space, suspended high above the main floor filled with glamazonian guests, harpist Liana filled the room with delicate tones, as she finessed the strings of her magnificent instrument. Paired with Greg Sara on the decks, Greg made his triumphant return to the very spot he spent so many years filling with inspiring beats. IYKYK…
As the evening settled in, sushi was served, martini’s flowed and guests took in the spectacular space. Suddenly, the walls were alive, as Cara, Alex and Pip, 3 of Melbourne’s most superbly talented dancers, also in gold chain, delivered slow and sensual free-style performances – capturing the attention and imagination of guests, and their Instagram stories.
It was time to take things up a notch.
Enter Jael Wena. A sight to see, in a stunning silk Effie Katz gown – Jael took to her podium, beneath the venues attention-grabbing, 5m chandelier and commanded the room as she delivered an entrancing version of Dua Lipa’s, ‘Don’t Stop Now.
As the blaring beats faded out, Jael wrapped the track with an awe-inspiring a cappella double chorus.
Once the audience regained composure and applauded wildly, the intro to Sia’s mega-hit, Chandelier fittingly rang through the venue. To suggest that Jael did it justice, would be perhaps the only understatement of the evening. The 16-year-old, who we cannot rave about more, delivered a rendition with emotion and sophisticated beyond her years – a proud moment for Beck, and the team we had the joy of working with on this breath-taking event.
As the evening rolled on, the beats continued thanks to DJ Edd Fisher, and the champagne flowed. There was a very clear sense, that this night was the start of something special, as guests overtly made plans to return in the very near future – to experience more of what Yugen has to offer.
A huge congratulations to the LK Hospitality team, and thanks to our wonderful friends at Reymond Communications. We were thrilled to be part of this wonderful event and cannot wait to visit Yugen again soon.
Beck xx