Inside the Met Gala, an Olympic champion Alysa Liu learns just how famous she's become

New York: Alysa Liu surveyed the glittery crowd arrayed in front of her, sipping cocktails and chatting. It was her first Met Gala, and she hesitated for a second, searching for a word to describe it. "It's … BIG," the Olympic skater finally said with a grin. But what Liu, dressed in a blood-red custom Louis Vuitton gown with a full skirt and huge ruffles, couldn't quite get was how big SHE had become. Even at a party full of very, very famous people, everyone wanted to greet her. Some Met Gala guests have been famous for many years. Others have achieved fame with dizzying speed. For Liu, all it took was a gold-medal performance that charmed the whole world. "Everybody recognizes me!" she said, with genuine surprise, of the crowd packed into the airy Charles Engelhard Court at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. "It's crazy. Imagine that overnight, suddenly everyone knows who you are!" And then America's skating sweetheart was off, soon to be spotted laughing with Connor Storrie of "Heated Rivalry," another star of the night who also arrived from an ice rink. Some more scenes from inside the Met Gala: After guests made their way up the carpeted steps to the museum, they entered into the Great Hall, which had been transformed into "a Northern Italian garden," in the museum's words. There was a huge moon hanging and swaying from the ceiling, and below it a floral centerpiece surrounded by cypress branches. A half dozen harpists serenaded the guests, who waited to shake the hands of the gala co-chairs - Nicole Kidman, Venus Williams, Vogue's Anna Wintour, and honorary chair Lauren Sánchez Bezos - but not, for now, the late-arriving Beyoncé. The receiving line was a long wait, reported Sarah Paulson. "I waited 45 minutes," the actor said, explaining why she hadn't made it yet to the Conde M. Nast Galleries to see the fashion exhibit, "Costume Art," which examines the dressed body through centuries of art history. Her feet hurt. "You could cut my legs off at the ankle," she said. As the Engelhard court gradually filled, guests milled about snacking on lobster crostini or tomato and mozzarella "pillows." Zoë Kravitz, who headed the host committee, greeted Storrie - did we mention he was a top attraction? - and complimented him on his work. Bradley Cooper and Gigi Hadid sat quietly chatting on the sidelines, hand in hand. Near them, Hugh Jackman and Sutton Foster did the same. Jackman stood up when skier Lindsey Vonn came by, giving her a hug. Vonn, who suffered a traumatic leg injury at the Winter Olympics, used only a cane and sparkled in a Thom Browne gown. Anti-billionaire backlash Ever since Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and wife Lauren Sánchez Bezos had been announced as honorary chairs, there had been anti-billionaire backlash in liberal New York City. Mayor Zohran Mamdani said he would not come. A group called Everyone Hates Elon - a reference to Musk - had plastered posters at bus stops, like one on the East Side saying "Dress code: Willful ignorance," and on subways. The Rev. Al Sharpton, though, had a different take. He'd attended a few Met Galas, and said billionaires were nothing new. "There have always been billionaires here," Sharpton said. "I may not agree with everything Bezos does, but do I abandon Beyoncé and Venus Williams?" He also praised Wintour for paying attention to diversity. "I opted to come." He said the gala "brings a cultured meeting space" for people who haven't yet met. At previous galas, Jon Batiste has performed, sometimes leading a musical band with his melodica to get crowds to head to dinner. This time around, he had no gala responsibilities - and he was happy. After all, he said, "it's date night" with his wife, Suleika Jaouad. "A night in the museum," he quipped. The couple were dinner guests of Wintour herself. Batiste wore a look by Eli Russell Linnetz that he said echoed the work of late Black portraitist Barkley L. Hendricks - a long white coat and white ensemble underneath. Hendricks often juxtaposed Black skin with white clothes, Batiste noted. Jaouad wore a sumptuous Christian Siriano gown. Sinéad Burke, the Irish disability activist, said that when she was first approached to be on the host committee, "I said no." Unless, she says she told organizers, they made the gala fully accessible. They did, Burke says, arranging for a step-free entrance for guests who need it, south of the main entrance. Burke ended up working closely with the museum for 18 months before the gala. She made sure there was room for disabled press to cover the gala carpet. She and her organization, Tilting the Lens, also helped train guides who will assist the public when they view "Costume Art," which has a large section on the disabled body. And Burke herself, who was born with dwarfism, agreed to pose for a custom mannequin; two outfits are displayed on mannequins created in her image. "I'm proud of the small moments," she said. Model Lauren Wasser, also on the host committee, attended in a custom Pr