Chaz Bono Weds Shara Blue Mathes in Hollywood Glam Ceremony, Cher Attends

Forty years after their first kiss at the Lee Strasberg Theatre & Film Institute in New York City, Chaz Bono and Shara Blue Mathes said "I do" at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel in Los Angeles on March 8, with Cher watching from the front row.

The ceremony leaned fully into its "Hollywood Glam Formal" theme, which the couple had announced on their wedding website. A black aisle lined with red roses, purple flowers, and glowing red candles set a moody, cinematic tone that felt less like a wedding backdrop and more like a film set — which, given the venue and the guest list, was entirely the point. People, which published exclusive photos of the nuptials, captured the moment the couple took a romantic dip at the aisle's end while Cher looked on, visibly beaming.

The bride's look was precise and cohesive. Shara Blue Mathes wore a white gown with long lace sleeves, her dark hair falling in soft curls, and carried a bouquet featuring purple orchids that echoed the ceremony's recurring violet thread. Chaz wore a black tuxedo finished with a purple calla lily boutonnière, pulling the color story together at his lapel.

The floral palette wasn't accidental. Purple ran from the bride's bouquet to the aisle arrangements to Chaz's boutonnière, giving the ceremony a visual signature that felt deliberate rather than decorative. The red roses and crimson candles pushed the drama further, the kind of moody romanticism that the Hollywood Roosevelt, a hotel with nearly a century of old-Hollywood atmosphere behind it, was built to contain.

"I first met Shara more than 40 years ago when we were just teenagers," Chaz told People. "I think it's safe to say that not many grooms ultimately end up marrying the very first girl they ever kissed so many years later. She makes me feel complete knowing she will always be there beside me as partner, my best friend, and the love of my life. No matter what life brings us, we will always be safer and stronger together… and we are home."

The two first met as young actors studying at the Lee Strasberg Theatre & Film Institute before losing touch and eventually reconnecting; they made their romance official in January 2017. Mathes has a 25-year-old son, Cooper, from a previous relationship. Chaz, 57, is the son of Cher and the late Sonny Bono.

A wedding that began as a teenage first kiss, paused for four decades, and concluded on a black aisle lined with candlelight is the kind of story that needs very little embellishment. The Hollywood Roosevelt provided the setting; the lace sleeves and the purple orchids provided the visual language. Cher provided the front-row presence that made it a cultural moment.