Inside Ari Emanuel and Sarah Staudinger’s St. Tropez Wedding
On the heels of the Cannes Film Festival, Hollywood power agent Ari Emanuel, CEO of Endeavor, married designer Sarah “Staud” Staudinger at a three-day wedding that took the Cote d’Azur by storm. Comedian Larry David officiated the ceremony that started at sunset in St. Tropez, a place that’s always held a special place in the bride’s heart—and just happens to be where the couple had their first date.
Staud and Ari met in 2018 through a business associate who set them up. “Originally, it was a ‘this is never going to happen’ situation,” jokes Staud, the woman behind the eponymous L.A.-based brand. “Ari was saying that he couldn’t see me for months and that he was going to be out of town because I was being elusive,” she remembers. “He was like ‘I’m going to take you to dinner in Europe,’ and I was like ‘No.’ And then he showed up”—in St. Tropez, where Staud was visiting her dad.
They dated for three years before getting engaged. “We were at home, and I was by the pool reading a book [when he proposed],” Staud remembers. “Ari and my cousin created the ring together. It’s my dream ring, and it’s so me.”
Every summer since they met, the couple make a point of revisiting St. Tropez, and they decided it would be the ideal wedding location. The goal was to do something that felt casual and honored St. Tropez “in the traditional sense versus what it’s come to be known as,” says Staud. “Going there as a child and visiting my dad, and my dad’s stories there, and all of that history and what I grew up with is what I love about it.”
The first night of the wedding was a recreation of the couple’s first date at Sénéquier. This served as the “Welcome to St. Tropez” event on the itinerary. “It couldn’t have been more iconic,” the bride says. When it came to her wardrobe for the dinner, Staud wanted something that skewed ’90s. She wore a custom column Staud dress and accessorized with Tiffany pieces from the Elsa Peretti collection.
On day two, guests descended upon St. Tropez’s iconic beachclub Gigi’s. “It was the perfect setting, so there wasn’t much to be done but add little touches like games,” Staud explains. “We had backgammon in the pool and traditional St. Tropezian touristy things like bracelets.” Daphne Lanternier, who works with Staud on her fashion shows, served as creative director and executed the designer’s vision throughout the weekend. “She’s super talented,” Staud says. “Her sister lives in St. Tropez, so she totally got it right off the bat.”
For this event, Staud looked to Alaïa to make a statement. She went to Paris to meet with the brand, where they brought out a roll of lace fabric in the perfect shade of ivory. They ultimately used it to make a two-piece ensemble. She had two fittings, and the second time the team happened to mention that they were preparing to launch swim as a new category. “They brought out all of these robes that Mr. Alaïa had created along with swim pieces, so I ended up wearing one for our beach day,” Staud says. “I think I might have forced them to launch their swim collection earlier than they wanted to!”
Later that day, Staud wanted to change into something a bit more retro, so the Staud team made a mollusk shell skirt and a tie top to round out the roster of looks.
On the morning of the wedding, the bride began the day in a Chanel tuxedo dress and shorts paired with Havianas, then changed into a cream La Perla slip and robe to get ready, before putting on her wedding dress. Renato Campora oversaw hair, while Romy Soleimani was on makeup. Her dress was, of course, a custom Staud creation. “I knew exactly what I wanted the lines of my wedding dress to be,” the bride says. “So we took masking tape and taped my body. It was really all about where it hit me, so we taped the bustline, we taped this drop waist which I really wanted. I wanted a dramatic dropped V waist, and I wanted a low-ish back, but I wanted it very fitted through the center and a minimal, simple neckline—feminine, nothing harsh, and I wanted the thinnest straps possible.”
Landing on the wedding venue was the biggest struggle for the bride. “We didn’t want to do it at a chateau,” she says. “We didn’t want to be so wedding-y.” They eventually found their location—a private residence at L’Estagnet—through people they knew on the ground. “It’s really just this little house on this big field,” Staud says. “My dad’s first house was on the exact same street and Brigitte Bardot’s house was across the street.”
When it was finally time to walk down the aisle, Staud was calm, cool, and collected. “I was surprised I wasn’t more nervous,” she says. “Right before, I went into the bathroom with my friends and read my vows, so I got a lot of tears out beforehand. They all started crying too. My makeup artist Romy wasn’t happy!”
Larry David served as the officiant, and of course roasted both the bride and the groom during his remarks. Then the couple shared vows they’d written themselves. And finally, the moment of truth: Larry asked if anyone knew of a reason why the couple shouldn’t be joined in marriage. “Does anyone here? Please object,” he begged. Tyler Perry stepped up to the plate and faked an objection to the laughter of the crowd. “It was really funny,” Staud says. “[Otherwise] we cried, of course. Ari gave me a stick of gum, which was an inside joke and emblematic of our relationship early on. We didn’t explain it, but I knew exactly what it was. It was just really funny and happy and joyous.” At the end, the newlyweds processed out together and then made their way to a gazebo where they greeted guests post-ceremony.
A total of five little gazebos were built, as well as a larger glass house where the dinner took place and an after-party space that was part of the existing structure of the villa on the property. “You have this house and then a huge lawn, and we had to kind of fill it up, and I wanted it to feel like it had been there forever,” Staud says. “It was all about creating those chill, classic beach elements and then the dinner tent, which kind of told this colorful pastel story, had this romantic vibe.”
Dinner was kept short with only a few speeches. “We wanted it to feel upbeat, and not long,” Staud says. “We wanted it to serve as this transitional moment into the party.” For the post-dinner celebration, the bride changed into a beaded dress that said “Staud Hearts Ari.” “It was a completely beaded mini dress with a matching bag,” she explains. “I wanted to do something that wasn’t necessarily kitschy, but had a nod to all of the graphics that had been used on the paper materials throughout the weekend, something personal that tied it all together.”
Staud is lucky to call some of the best DJs in the world her close friends, so the dance floor stayed full until the morning. “Ross, who is one of my best friend [Harley Viera-Newton]’s husband started, and then Diplo, Sam French, Hank, and Trevor all followed. Diplo was leading, and everyone was taking a song and then another song [throughout the night].” Later in the evening Staud decided she wanted to throw her bouquet out on the dance floor, and DJ Hank Korsan’s girlfriend Sara Nataf caught it.
There was a birthday moment in the mix for a friend turning 40 as well as Ari’s son, who was celebrating his 20th. “We sang happy birthday and gave them cakes, which were definitely thrown in each other’s faces at some point,” she says.
Eventually, Staud changed into a 1967 Paco Rabanne dress that she bought from Lily et Cie in Beverly Hills. “It weighed about 30 pounds,” she notes. “It’s a true vintage Paco. I tried it on and was like ‘I must have this!’” Underneath, she was wearing a bodysuit that ultimately served as a swimsuit when she jumped in the pool—which had a giant disco ball suspended over it—at the end of the night. “Everyone was dancing and having the best time,” she says. “I literally wanted people to have happiness for the sake of happiness. This was about love for love’s sake and everyone having a blast. I think that final day you really felt it especially.”
Photo: Dafydd Jones1/86St. Tropez is where we had our first date, and this balcony off of my dad's apartment is where I grew up. We watched our friends arrive in the marina for our first dinner of the weekend. It brought back so many memories.
Photo: Dafydd Jones2/86Iconic Senequier, where we had our first date. The first night was about reliving that moment with all of our friends and family.
Photo: Robert Fairer3/86The restaurant is in the marina, the oldest part of the city. The food and the scene is classic St. Tropez.
