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On a crisp November night in 1966, the would-be prince of New York City threw a ball that even Cinderella would have had trouble getting into. The prince was Truman Capote, and the party was his Black and White Ball, honoring the Washington Post<\/em>\u2019s publisher, Katharine Graham. Around 540 handpicked guests turned up to the Plaza Hotel for what Capote would describe as \u201ca little masked ball\u201d featuring New York\u2019s finest, from Lauren Bacall to Norman Mailer to, of course, his beloved swans<\/a>. Capote\u2019s Black and White Ball wasn\u2019t just the event of the season\u2014it was the<\/em> society event of the \u201960s.<\/p>\n Naturally, FX\u2019s Feud: Capote vs. the Swans<\/em> devotes an entire episode to the event\u2014from its meticulous planning to the night of the picture-perfect party. To bring the Black and White Ball to life, executive producer Ryan Murphy<\/strong> and director Gus Van Sant<\/strong> enlisted famed fashion designer Zac Posen.<\/strong> \u201cGus is a good friend, and Ryan is a friend and somebody I\u2019ve known for a long time. We\u2019ve wanted to work together for a long time,\u201d Posen says. When the team asked the designer if he might want to fabricate the episode\u2019s elaborate gowns, they were in luck: \u201cI don\u2019t have my own line anymore,\u201d he says. \u201cSo I only do one-of-a-kind pieces.\u201d (Days after our interview, Posen would be named the executive vice president, creative director of Gap, and the chief creative officer of Old Navy.)<\/p>\n Running a major fashion label is not the same thing as costuming a major television show. \u201cCostume design is a different consideration\u2014more character building,\u201d he says. \u201cIt\u2019s also elevated. Not only is it costume design of a time period, it\u2019s costume design within the wonderful world of Ryan Murphy, aesthetically set between Ryan and his collaborator [Feud<\/em> costume designer] Lou [Eyrich],<\/strong> of a world that they\u2019ve created through the lens of Gus Van Sant. So you kind of find your place within that.\u201d<\/p>\n But Posen didn\u2019t feel obligated to hew entirely to the historical record. In fact, Murphy specifically told him not to. Still, he did his homework. \u201cI was finding historical matches of fabrics, of color sources, deadstock flowers from one of the oldest silk flower places in New York of that time period,\u201d Posen says. He worked closely with Deborah Davis,<\/strong> author of Party of the Century: The Fabulous Story of Truman Capote and His Black and White Ball.<\/em> Then Posen combined his research with his own creative vision. The result? A true feast for the eyes.<\/p>\n