Louis XIV could not have imagined a more opulent setting than that created for Le Grand Bal Parisien, a gilded soirée celebrating the 60th anniversary of the venerable Crystal Charity Ball. And who would expect anything less from the evening that serves as the unchallenged epicenter of the Dallas social swirl?

As the 1,650 grandly attired guests glided into the Hilton Anatole, they were dramatically transported far beyond the confines of a massive convention hotel. The 40-foot Eiffel Tower, bedecked with blinking lights, was the visual harbinger of things to come.

Surrounded by boxwood hedges and voluminous banks of white cyclamen, tastefully punctuated by French-style statuary, the structure was the pinnacle of the various vignettes that came together in a grand French tableau. And this was just for the two-hour cocktail reception.

As the A-listers arrived, gala chair Aileen Pratt, husband Jack Pratt not far afield, greeted guests as if she were the queen for the day. And, indeed, to chair this ball is to establish coveted social credentials that only 60 women have previously enjoyed. Wearing a glittering, golden gown by Oscar de la Renta, she filled the role convincingly.

Stepping through the looking glass into this world of magnificent beauty were notables including Annette and Harold Simmons, who had donated $1 million to the annual fundraising effort that for 2012 brought in some $4.5 million for eight local charities serving the needs of children. (So important was the couple that they had their own special waiter to oversee the needs of their well-placed table.)

Kudos to 2012 underwriting chair Michal Powell, who spent much of the night thanking major donors, a proud Loyd Powell joining his wife.

After bidding on silent auction items, shopping the gift boutique and challenging Lady Luck in the packed casino, guests moved into the ballroom where Tom Addis' decor rivaled any Versailles reproduction — though he modestly described the look as more Petite Trianon than the grand palace. But, we must say, "Au contraire." The ballroom was a Marie Antoinette spectacular.

This was the special events guru's 19th year to create the ball environment — a monumental effort for 2012 that included draping ballroom walls in floral murals and adding mullioned mirrors and gilded columns. Bountiful bouquets of peonies, roses, hydrangeas and Casa Blanca lilies filled the vast ballroom with heavenly fragrance and enveloped the soaring cocktail lighting at each table.

The beauty of the room was not lost on guests such as Caroline Rose Hunt, Del Frnka, Yvonne Crum, Cynthia and Forrest Miller, Cissy and Plack Carr, Sarah and Ross Perot, Amy and Malone Mitchell, Jane and Pat Bolin, and Renee and David Winter.

Before the dinner (which started with caviar, lobster and pate de foie gras), guests were treated to a lively dance presentation that included rollicking can can dancers, 18th century minuet-style presentations and more. The enthusiastic crowd flanked the dance floor with few taking their seats until after the vibrant entertainment.

Casting a thoughtful eye across the proceedings was 2013 Crystal Charity Ball chair Caren Kline, who, at midnight received the chair's baton from Aileen Pratt in the traditional passing-on of power.

Among those wining, dining and dancing were Lucy Billingsley, Alan and Randy Engstrom, Nancy Carlson, Pam Perella, Kimberly Schlegel Whitman, Lynn and Allan McBee, Leigh and Ryan Friend, Linda and Steve Ivy, and Laura and Mark Flagg.