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“It’s a trompe l’ oeil effect,” Nichanian said.
Upon entering the event, guests will be given a radio frequency ID with a chip inside carrying their name, which will allow them to be recognized as they view the installations, Malachi said.
Attendees will be greeted with champagne as aerialists, dressed in Hermès attire, walk along beams above their heads. The design house has installed mirrors atop the floors on part of the lower level, so the movement of the aerialists will be reflected as guests walk between the mirrors.
“It’s almost like you’re on the beam, as well,” Erlich said.
A team of more than 150 have been working to put on the event, including a production company, a choreographer, dancers, and actors brought in from New York, as well as 31 male models cast in Miami.
Nichanian visited Miami in February and, taken with its energy, chose it for the event. She toured the Moore Building with Erlich and decided “it would be fun to play with the space and transform it.”
On Thursday, models and aerialists were rehearsing as crew members put the finishing touches on the conceptual displays.
Hermès executives appeared aghast when asked the budget for the event and demurely declined to comment.
Founded in Paris in 1837, Hermès generated $1.1 billion in revenue for the first quarter of 2013, up 12.8 percent from the same period of 2012. Of that, $173.5 million was derived from the Americas, up 11 percent. Hermès has 376 stores worldwide, including 27 in the United States.
Hermès closed its store in the Bal Harbour Shops and opened a temporary shop in the Design District in February, with plans to open a larger, flagship store in the Design District in December 2014.
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