Continued from Part 1…

On the second day of the Necmacolin Summer Solstice Celebration, guests had a plethora of activities from which to choose—including treatments at the Woodlands Spa and Salon, golfing with PGA pros Fred Couples, Michelle Wie West, and Nick Faldo on one of the resort’s two Pete Dye-designed championship golf courses, and a tennis clinic with the legendary John McEnroe—but by late afternoon, all and sundry were back in their luxe accommodations, getting ready for the black-tie soiree, ahead.

This time, the waiting shuttles took us to Falling Rock, where, on the Sunset Terrace, such noted notables as Michele Hicks (The Unheard), Nicole Ari Parker (And Just Like That…), Lois Freedman (President/CEO, Jean-Georges Management), Ashley Sherrod and Kane Manera, Tommy Dunn, Eddie Roche (Chief Content Officer, Daily Front Row) and Hunter Kohl (The Divorced Billionaire Heiress), Honey Valentín Gonzales (Legendary, Renaissance World Tour), Pablo Ferrari, and Garrett Neff kibbitzed in their finest finery while sipping on cocktails presented in glasses the shape of ‘Pearl’ (Nemacolin’s jovial avian mascot) and appetizers by renowned chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten (who was personally overseeing the night’s culinary offerings).

Then it was down a path along which several sitar players serenaded us on our way to yet another pavilion that had been erected for the weekend, this time for the seated dinner prepared by Vongerichten, which began with a heaping portion of JG Select Caviar on a bed of Yellowfin Tuna Tartar, continued with a Roast Carrot and Avocado Salad with seeds, citrus, and crème fraiche, and culminated with a juicy Wagyu Beef Tenderloin, followed by an array of desserts.

Once again, it was a night of unforgettable performances that had everybody on their feet, spinning, laughing, and later, dancing, beginning with the dulcet tones of Michael Bublé and his orchestra.  Bublé—who had performed for late Nemacolin founder Joe Hardy on his 100th birthday—joked that he wanted Maggie Hardy to adopt him so he could move to Nemacolin (we all felt the same way) and had everyone’s spirits soaring, especially with a clever tribute to Elvis Presley.  Then came the “surprise” guest, Lady Gaga, who really got everyone in a tizzy performing songs from her Jazz + Piano repertoire with her bandleader Brian Newman and his incredible band.

Following this back-to-back concert, Nick Cannon took to the DJ booth and kept the party going.  I missed a text from Newman, telling me he was at the bar, but I wasn’t checking my phone as I was dancing my proverbial ass off with Michele Hicks in a cluster that also included Carole Radziwill, Lily Rabe and Hamish Linklater, Nolan Funk, David Burtka and Neil Patrick Harris, and Marcia Gay Harden.  But I know how my friend’s mind works and found him après in the Hardy Room, the well-appointed cigar lounge in The Chateau, where I joined him and his band and members of Bublé’s orchestra for a late-night drink and a cigar.

The following morning, Gingi Beltran and I joined Harden at the farewell Pajama Jammy Jam Brunch, where we bid our farewells to the assemblage before the jet came (to Nemacolin’s private landing strip) to fly the final six of us back to Teterboro.

There is so much to say about Nemacolin, a truly magical place, perhaps best summed up as delivering luxury through the prism of Willy Wonka.  Meanwhile, looking back on this unforgettable weekend, I think it’s apt to posit that Maggie Hardy is the Auntie Mame of experiential luxury hospitality!

Nemacolin Summer Solstice Celebration
Nemacolin
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