Moulin Rouge’s Karen Olivo’s Hand-Painted Snake Suit and Heels Are a Must-See

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Moulin Rouge! The Musical officially opened on Thursday evening, and its splashy opening night after-party at Hammerstein Ballroom in NYC was the place to be.

Apart from the Broadway show itself, of course, another must-see from that night is the stunning hand-painted snake suit worn by Satine role-player, Karen Olivo.

Karen Olivo in a custom red Carolina Herrera suit hand-painted with a snake design and hand-embellished with Swarovski crystals

Seriously, would you look at the details on that emerald-and-diamond snake slithering around Karen’s red Carolina Herrera two-piece suit?

 

 
 
 
 
 
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Costume designer Wilberth Gonzalez drew inspiration from Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec’s poster of can-can dancer Jane Avril for his sexy creation. It took him over 60 hours to hand-paint the snake motif and to hand-embellish it with Swarovski crystals.

Karen Olivo and Aaron Tveit at the Moulin Rouge opening night partyKaren Olivo and Aaron Tveit at the opening night party for the Broadway musical Moulin Rouge held at the Hammerstein Ballroom in New York City on July 25, 2019

Karen matched her suit with a green Judith Lieber ‘Serpent’ snakeskin bag ($1,695 at Saks Fifth Avenue) featuring a gold-and-crystal snake on the flap.

Judith Lieber Serpent snakeskin bagDetails of Karen Olivo’s Judith Leiber Couture ‘Serpent’ green-snakeskin bag

She further complemented the green-and-diamond motif with eye-catching custom emerald-hued Larry Vrba earrings.

Custom emerald-hued Larry Vrba earrings on Karen OlivoCustom emerald-hued Larry Vrba earrings on Karen Olivo

The Broadway veteran rounded out her look with Michael Kors ‘Paloma’ sandals that are also custom-painted and embellished with green-and-silver-colored stones.

Karen Olivo's sexy feet in 'Paloma' platform sandals custom-painted and embellished by costume designer Wilberth GonzalezKaren Olivo’s sexy feet in ‘Paloma’ platform sandals custom-painted and embellished by costume designer Wilberth Gonzalez

The Michael Kors ‘Paloma’ sandals are distinguished by the fluted texture on the chunky heels. They are a challenging five inches high but the 1.5-inch platforms should help with the balancing! 

Paloma Platform Sandals, $59.99 to $139.98 at Zappos and Amazon

Michael Kors Paloma red

Michael Kors Paloma black

Michael Kors Paloma khaki

Credit: Joseph Marzullo / WENN