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What Is The Theme Of This Year's Met Ball? Fashion Is Turning Religious This Year

by Casey Suglia

Every year, the Met Gala celebrates couture and art with the most deep-cut theme ever required of costume party attendees. And if you were wondering what the theme of this year's Met Ball is — so you can look forward to what your favorite celebrity might be wearing and/or prepare your monocle to be blown right off your face — you might be surprised by the heavenly turn this institution has taken in 2018.

The Metropolitan Museum of Art Costume Institute Benefit (or Met Gala for short, according to the New York Times) is held once a year on the first Monday of every May since the 1970s, and it is meant to raise money for the Costume Institute of the museum, according to the New York Times.

But the secondary purpose of the Met Gala is to provide a means and a reason for people to gawk at their favorite celebrities in nearly inexplicable outfits that are intended to match the theme (sometimes loosely). To put it lightly, it's like the fashion and entertainment industry's version of a theme party in college. You don't know how committed to the theme some attendees will be, but you know that you definitely want to go just to see what people will be wearing.

And this year's theme of "Heavenly Bodies: Fashion and the Catholic Imagination" will definitely be one to watch, according to the heavenly bodies at Vogue. And given tickets to the event cost $30,000, per the New York Times, you had better believe people are going to dress up.

Religion and faith isn't necessarily something that people bring up in conversation immediately, which is why it's considered to be a pretty touchy subject, depending on you ask (then again, the Cool Pope has done a lot for Catholicism). And because people have such strong thoughts about it, it's likely that they're going to have strong feelings about tonight's Met Gala theme and the fashion that stems from it, according to Vox. Needless to say, there might be a dress or two that will cause controversy. But this theme isn't meant to get people upset, according to Vogue, instead it is meant to "create a dialogue between fashion and the masterworks of religious art in the museum's holdings." It's very possible, however, that this dialogue could have a not-so-great tone to it.

But of course, people won't find out about how the theme is handled until they see their favorite celebrities take to the museum steps and show off what designers have decided to dress them in later this evening. There will definitely be a few celebrities to keep an eye out for on the red carpet this year. Donatella Versace, Rihanna, and Amal Clooney will be co-hosting the event with Vogue editor, Anna Wintour, according to Elle, which means they will likely be going all out due to their role.

Although the Met Gala might seem elitist and a threat to the integrity of very old artwork (throwback to smoking in the ladies' last year), it could be argued to make art accessible to a wider audience (what is more accessible than Rihanna in yellow?). It's the one time a year to see "reality TV at its most glamorous" meaning that the list of attendees (which is typically kept private until they show up, according to Newsweek), will be at their best dressed.

Although it is uncertain if the outfits worn by celebrities tonight might cause some controversy or have a religious leaning, one thing is for sure — it is something that people will be talking about for days to come.

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