The gala
What the institutions publish
- Debrett's. Black tie calls for a black wool dinner jacket, single-breasted, without vents, with peaked or shawl lapels in silk, worn with a bow tie one ties oneself.
- Debrett's. White tie, the most formal and rarest of codes, requires a black tailcoat with silk lapels worn open, over a white shirt fastened with removable shirt studs.
- Debrett's. Every invitation calls for a prompt reply, acceptance or regrets, and going back on one's word at the last moment is considered rude.
- amfAR, The Foundation for AIDS Research. The amfAR Gala Cannes is presented in the foundation's press releases as a black tie event: cocktails, dinner, then a live auction.
- Monte-Carlo Société des Bains de Mer. At the Monaco Red Cross Gala, gala dress is required, dinner is served at 20:30 and admission is reserved for guests aged 7 and over.
- Monte-Carlo Société des Bains de Mer. Donors to the Monaco Red Cross Gala are expected from 19:45 in the Salle des Etoiles, where the evening opens with the gala dinner followed by a tombola, punctuated by the fireworks launched from the sea just before the show.
Custom, according to the house
One replies to an invitation in the days that follow, never on the eve. One arrives at the cocktail hour, not the dinner hour; one does not change places at table. During the gala auction, one applauds the lots of others. The telephone stays in the pocket: a gala is recounted the next day, not live.