DUBAI: This week, US singer and actress Lady Gaga looked every part the showgirl wearing a crystal-embellished dress by Lebanese designer Georges Hobeika as she joined legendary crooner Tony Bennett onstage to commemorate her longtime collaborator’s 95th birthday.
As she exited Manhattan’s Radio City Music Hall, Gaga, whose real name is Stefani Germanotta, dazzled in the custom gown, which featured crystallized silk-tulle and silver floral appliqués. Brimming with details, the stunning gown also featured a plunging neckline, delicate straps and 3-D ruffles at the hem.
Notably, it was the “Bad Romance” hitmaker’s first time stepping out in a creation from Baskinta-born Georges Hobeika.
The instance was not lost on the designer, who shared on the label’s Instagram: “The one and only Lady Gaga wows onlookers in a Georges Hobeika custom-made dress after her dazzling One Last Time concert at Radio City Music Hall.”
According to the designer’s sketches, the dress was to be paired with a white feather stole but Gaga opted to wear the gown on its own and only sported the custom scarf while taking photos with Bennett backstage.
Initial sketch of the Georges Hobeika ensemble. Instagram
“Can’t breathhhhhh!!!! Lady Gaga in custom Georges Hobeika (sic),” co-creative director Jad Hobeika said on Instagram.
While it might have been the 35-year-old’s first time donning a creation by Georges Hobeika, it certainly wasn’t the first time that she has championed Arab talent.
In fact, the singer and actress has sported regional designers on red carpets, during performances and on-screen on plenty of occasions, such as Emirati fashion house Khyeli and Saudi-led label Ashi Studio.
Additionally, she counted the late Tunisian couturier Azzedine Alaia as one of the closest people to her and was understandably devastated when he passed away in Paris in 2017, taking to Instagram to pay tribute to the iconic couturier.
“I’ll mourn forever the loss of my friend,” the star wrote on Instagram as news of the designer’s death broke.
“I️’d watch in awe as he handmade each and every piece, his fingers touching the fabric like poetry. Then he would want to feed us all, and cook with his own hands and talk for hours at the table while his dogs would run around joyfully smelling the delicious food he made us.
“To say he was special would be an understatement. To say he was integral, important and influential to fashion is simply not enough. There was no one who did what he did.”
She also went on to honor the designer at the American Music Awards, which took place just one day after his passing.
