Rio de Janeiro
It was seven in the morning, the doors to the Biennale had not yet opened and people were already standing outside the door waiting to join Julia Quinn’s dance. That would be at seven in the evening.
Tickets for the Royal Ball, a special event planned by publisher Arqueiro with “Bridgerton” pageantry, would not be distributed until an hour before the party. The line, full of girls in long dresses looking like tropical debutantes, only grew so far.
The annoyance grew as the afternoon progressed, peppered with shouts at apparent queue jumpers and an atmosphere of restlessness and sweat that drenched various leaders. The rush of the herd at 6 p.m. had something of relief and catharsis about it.
“Julia, where are you, I came here just to see you,” sang the predominantly female audience at around 7:20 p.m. on the largest stage of the event in the Blue Pavilhão. The spectator chairs were removed so that everyone could continue to stand between white sheets and curious stands.
For those who don’t know, “Julia” is now one of the biggest bestsellers in Brazil and mimics a modernday Jane Austen. The American is responsible for the books in the series “The Bridgertons,” which won hearts especially after the extremely successful Netflix series.
She arrived shortly after an appearance by two masters of ceremonies, who mixed excitement with the obvious heat beneath the heavy cloths. The costumes were taken extremely seriously and many people wore eye masks, which unfortunately looked a little too reminiscent of another series, Fifty Shades of Grey.
Sitting on a padded, highbacked throne on the stage, Quinn appeared meek and a little embarrassed clearly overwhelmed by the emotional crowd as she gave short answers translated by her editor.
“I have big dreams, but I’ve never dreamed this big,” he said as he reflected on the impact of his series in countries like Brazil. When asked about the reason for the impact of her historical novels, she said that they were able to “escape us from reality even more than our contemporaries.”
After the interview, actors in period dress danced side by side in an open clearing amid the audience, who continued to watch them balk. In the end, the hundred fans who arrived early dare we say, early were rewarded by going on stage to take photos with the author. It seems the tables have turned.
The Book Biennale, which had a much busier day than the first, an effect that was definitely expected on Saturday, continues this Sunday when two more young pop stars will appear at the party, Cassandra Clare and Holly Black.