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16 A MASTERPIECE MAKING BY BILLY FONG. PHOTOGRAPHY TAMYTHA CAMERON SMITH. W hy do so many charity benefits feel the need to revamp and reinvent? Plenty of the 20- and 30-somethings I know actu- ally prefer old-school. It's a chance for long evening gowns and classic tuxedos. A proper museum gala should focus on the art, perhaps an abbreviated classical music performance, all accompanied by a beautifully set meal. For the inaugural Meadows Museum Masterpiece Gala, chair Pilar Henry and honorary chairs Peggy and Carl Sewell, got it right, perfecting the tried-and-true formula for an elegant, truly fun evening. Resplendently dressed guests ascended the grand staircase and entered the museum, which was decorated in theme with the current exhibition on the Spanish master of Surrealism, "Dalí: Poetics of the Small, 1929–1936." The mustached maestro of the canvas would have been pleased with the backdrop for his art. The lithe and supremely skilled troupe of dancers from SMU's Meadows School of the Arts performed with handcrafted masks representing key elements from Dalí's paintings. Each dancer created their own series of physical and dramatic in- terpretations of his work, performing group improvisations throughout the party. Dinner was set in the Jake and Nancy Hamon Galleries, where little table embellishment was needed as guests were seated amongst grand old master paintings in gilded frames. During his remarks, SMU president R. Gerald Turner proclaimed proceeds from the Masterpiece Gala would help endow the museum's director of education position, a vital role at the museum. In the end, the gala raised $700,000, far surpassing the committee's lofty goal. SEEN: Meadows Museum director Mark Roglán, Linda and Bill Custard, Beth and Sam Holland, Janet and Terry Kafka, Caren Prothro, Bess and Ted Enloe, Gayle and Paul Stoffel, Abigail and Andrew Sinwell, Mason and Allen Custard, and Emily and Steve Summers. in the Steve & Marcie Sands, Jean Marie Clossey, Loyd Taylor James & Abigail Rust Lee & Ann Hobson Jay & Pilar Henry Mason & Allen Custard Carl & Peggy Sewell R. Gerald & Gail Turner John Henry, Laura Wilson N'tamo de Mendonca, Laura Munoz Abigail Sinwell, Stewart Cohen, Megan McManemin