Nicole Ari Parker's Daughter Sophie Takes PEOPLE Inside Star-Studded Debutante Ball: 'I Heard Princess and I Was Sold' (Exclusive)

On average, you can find Sophie Kodjoe in her most comfortable pair of sweatpants. But when her mom, Nicole, offered Ari Parker the chance to trade in her loungewear for a ball gown, she jumped at the idea.

On Saturday, November 30, the 19-year-old daughter of Parker, 54, and Boris Kodjoe, 51, attended Le Bal des Débutantes in Paris, an annual event that introduces about 20 women between the ages of 16 and 22 to high society. Among the debutantes this year were Sophie, Apple Martin and other intelligent young women who have traveled a lot with impressive titles.

In an exclusive chat with PEOPLE, Parker, Kodjoe and Sophie join a Zoom call from three different locations to discuss her entry into society.

Debutantes participating in Le Bal des Débutantes 2024.

Morgan Amsellem

Nicole Ari Parker’s daughter, Sophie, made her mark at the Deb Ball in Paris, and her dress is just that Sex and the city Coded

Admittedly, Parker had no experience with the “debut life” until a producer came along And just like that… suggested that she submit an application to participate in this “beautiful, magical event”.

“I walked up to Sophie and Sophie said, ‘Mom, it’s like… Are you sure? I mean, it’s really a lot,'” she recalls as her daughter smiles in the background.

“At first I thought, ‘What do we know about the debutante ball?'” laughs Sophie. “And she likes to say that I live in sweatpants. The idea of ​​being in this space was so… It was a bit foreign to me. But then I heard the princess and I was sold. From the age of five I was like, I’ve always wanted to wear big dress and dance and drink tea, so I thought, this is something I have to do.”

Sophie Kodjoe is getting ready for her debutante ball.

Morgan Amsellem

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Kodjoe, on the other hand, needed a little more convincing. He already knew that “my daughter is a princess” and had just returned from Rwanda. Until Parker reminded him that they needed to “live this moment together”—after all, they were “empty nesters, and she’s our firstborn.”

After everyone was on board, the whole family got to work. Before they could fly to Paris for waltz lessons, rehearsals, photo shoots and other events to prepare for the big night, Parker and Sophie went through various rehearsals and jumped through many hoops to choose her dress.

“One of the conditions [is] that no two girls wear the same designer. And because I was filming, I was very late organizing that part of the ball, so all the designers were pretty busy,” says Parker, classic designers like Chanel, Valentino and Dior were no longer an option.

In the end, both Parker and Sophie were dressed by Oscar de la Renta. On her big night out, Sophie stunned in a plum gown that had a balloon skirt gathered up one side to reveal a thigh-high slit. She accessorized with a solid gold choker and towering earrings by V Muse, and wore her dark hair in a chic updo.

Sophie Kodjoe and her cavalier, Toussaint.

Morgan Amsellem

As for Kodjoe, he opted for a HUGO BOSS tuxedo and took Sophie’s cavalier (or escort), her friend Toussaint, to his own rehearsal in the designated atelier.

“He had to have a specific shoe, a specific tuxedo, tails, suspenders, a vest, a white bow tie — everything,” Parker says of their daughter’s outing, before Kodjoe adds, “We had to outfit him with all that stuff, which was fun.”

In Paris, Sophie was overwhelmed with painting and the various events she had to attend. There she met her fellow debutantes.

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Sophie Kodjoe poses with her fellow debutantes.

Francois Goize

“I was nervous at first because sometimes I get nervous around new people,” she admits. “Especially with all these amazing young women my age, and they’re all doing amazing things in other parts of the world. I said, ‘Oh my God, I don’t have a title. I’m just Sophie from LA.'”

When the time came for Sophie’s social debut, it was an emotional affair for the whole family.

“It was a lot,” Kodjoe says of seeing Sophie in her full glory for the first time. “When you raise these human beings from when they are so big … unconditional love comes with unconditional fear.”

“To see her spread her wings, so to speak, in all her grace and glory and beauty and her personality come out on this stage was incredible,” he sighs. “It was very, very emotional. Lots of tears. Tears of joy, tears of melancholy as she took her first steps into this big, big life. It’s amazing. It was really, really great.”

Sophie Kodjoe at the ball.

Morgan Amsellem

Sophie says Parker was “a mess even in rehearsals” and kept checking on her as she got ready upstairs.

“For some reason, I was convinced she needed something when she was wearing makeup. I had to make sure her hair was right,” laughs Parker. “And every time I showed up, she said, ‘Mom, go upstairs! Everything’s fine’.”

When it comes time to tell about tonight’s father-daughter dance, Sophie cringes before bursting into laughter. She tells PEOPLE that the duo’s only emotion was “silly” and that they received a lot of “compliments” for their choreography choices.

Boris Kodjoe and Sophie Kodjoe are dancing.

Morgan Amsellem

“I’ll have to brag that we did it faster than a lot of the other dads and daughters out there,” jokes Sophie, and Kodjoe agrees, “We’ve got some rhythm, which is great, and a lot of people struggle with that.”

Their dance assignments were so good that they were selected to be one of three father-daughter pairs with a two-and-a-half-minute solo dance.

Now that Le Bal is behind her, Sophie looks back on the stormy affair with a sense of awe and gratitude.

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“Honestly, it’s so crazy because I never thought I’d be out there this much socially because there are so many amazing women I’ve done this with,” she said. Aside from their titles, Sophie says each debutante was “so beautiful, so talented and so well-travelled”.

“I was very excited and a little humbled,” she smiles.

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If there is another ball, Sophie will be an enthusiastic participant. For now, she tells PEOPLE she’s sticking with her studies at Howard University — whether she’s in high society or not.

“I’ll just keep going to school and keep living the life I was before. As soon as Le Bal ended, I went right back to my subjects,” she says. “I won’t forget it at all. And hopefully I can start to, I guess, shut down [there]… but I don’t think it will change my daily routine much.”

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Source: HIS Education