• Intelligencer
  • The Cut
  • Vulture
  • The Strategist
  • Curbed
  • Grub Street
  • Subscribe to the Magazine Give a Gift Subscription Buy Back Issues Current Issue Contents
    Subscribe to New York Magazine
  • Subscribe
  • Profile
    Sign Out
The Cut
  • Style
  • Self
  • Culture
  • Power
Style
  • Fashion
  • Beauty
  • Parties & Red Carpet
  • Fashion Shows
  • Cathy Horyn
  • The Cut Shop
Self
  • Health & Wellness
  • The State of the Uterus
  • Parenting
  • Advice
  • Sex & Relationships
  • Horoscopes
Culture
  • Books
  • Television
  • Movies
  • Music
  • Celebrity
Power
  • Politics
  • Work
  • Money
  • Rebecca Traister
More
  • Latest Stories
  • Video
  • About Us
  • nymag.com
  • New York Magazine
  • Intelligencer
  • Vulture
  • The Cut
  • The Strategist
  • Grub Street
  • Curbed
party chat
September 12, 2016

Opening Ceremony Followed Its Funny Fashion Show With a Genuinely Fun Party

By Véronique Hyland

Share

  • Share
  • Tweet
Photo: Max Lakner/BFA.com

Last night at the atypical fashion venue that is the Javits Center — the closest it’s come to New York Fashion Week before is playing host to a cat fashion show I regrettably attended in 2009 — Carrie Brownstein and Fred Armisen hosted a combination talent pageant, Olympics Opening Ceremonies, and runway show for Opening Ceremony.

Backstage after the show, co-designer Humberto Leon told the Cut that Carrie and Fred’s comments as the models walked the runway were almost entirely improvised, which explains some of the models’ genuine laughter at their quips. “We gave them free rein to make fun of the clothes,” he said. “We’re never going to take ourselves super seriously, and we’re also in on our own jokes. We’re not ashamed to make fun of ourselves.” (See also: spring 2015’s silly, self-referential play.)

The show addressed the looming election and the issues surrounding it, but with a light, not-too-preachy touch. “There were a couple of messages we wanted to get across, and then also, at the end of the day, we wanted it to be fun,” said Leon. Added his partner in crime, Carol Lim, “The individual speakers had specific things they wanted to talk about” — like Natasha Lyonne’s focus on prison reform, or Diane Guerrero’s on immigration rights. “We wanted people who had a point of view on certain things.”

They also went to great lengths to find flag bearers from each of the countries represented. Said Leon, they “were scouring through the entire city for weeks.” Each wore a customized varsity jacket for his nation, and Leon noted that the O.C. team was beading them right up until the last minute.

After the Javits Center, the O.C. crew headed to the equally chic Penn Plaza, located in the jewel of Manhattan, Herald Square. The party was meant to mark the brand’s collaboration with Esprit, the latest in their ever-churning nostalgia machine. Ads featuring cool kids with brightly colored sweatshirts played on big screens, and the crowd alternated between grazing at the venue’s fancy new food court and taking an escalator upstairs to dance in a smoke-filled, deafening loft.

Aziz Ansari, who sat front row and contributed an essay to the show’s program, deadpanned, “Fashion Week is known as some of the best comedy audiences you can ask for … At first I was like, oh, God, these poor guys, why are they making them do comedy there?” he said. “And then they were so funny and everyone laughed and had a good time.”

Ansari, already a fashion aficionado, has been really immersing himself in the scene this week, having also attended Saturday night’s #Wangfest, which he told me was his first-ever Alexander Wang party. “I was always like, there’s probably too many people, and I’m not that crazy into crowds. I just stopped in for a second and left.” He didn’t even get a chance to join the hordes eating McDonald’s. “They had McGriddles, right?” he said wistfully. (They did.)

Tinashe, who was wearing thigh-high crushed velvet boots as casually as though they were bedroom slippers, was tucked into a corner. The show wasn’t her first fashion show, not even her first O.C. show, but she said she thought the comedy angle was a welcome innovation. “I thought it was a fresh vibe. It kept the pace of the show really interesting,” she said. “I thought it was great that they were using their platform to express something they were passionate about.”

She had no recollection of Esprit (she’s 23) and I’d imagine most of the crowd didn’t either, but the ‘90s nostalgia vibes were still strong. As I was leaving, a young guy strode by holding a landline phone with a cord that didn’t attach to anything. His friends were clutching onto its plastic spiral, letting him pull them along. If there were a more on-the-nose metaphor for the past’s extreme pull, I couldn’t conceive of it.

View
1 / 18 Photos
Teyana Taylor Where: Esprit for Opening Ceremony Launch Party. Photo: Max Lakner/BFA.com
Aziz Ansari, Aubrey Plaza Where: Esprit for Opening Ceremony Launch Party. Photo: Max Lakner/BFA.com
DJ Shlohmo Where: Esprit for Opening Ceremony Launch Party. Photo: Max Lakner/BFA.com
Gitoo Where: Esprit for Opening Ceremony Launch Party. Photo: Max Lakner/BFA.com
Ipti Omer Where: Esprit for Opening Ceremony Launch Party. Photo: Max Lakner/BFA.com
Aidy Bryant, Miranda July, Carrie Brownstein, Fred Armisen, Abbi Jacobson, Natasha Lyonne Where: Esprit for Opening Ceremony Launch Party. Photo... Aidy Bryant, Miranda July, Carrie Brownstein, Fred Armisen, Abbi Jacobson, Natasha Lyonne Where: Esprit for Opening Ceremony Launch Party. Photo: Max Lakner/BFA.com/Max Lakner/BFA.com
Taj Alwan, Jeremy Atzlain Where: Esprit for Opening Ceremony Launch Party. Photo: Max Lakner/BFA.com
Shaun Ross Where: Esprit for Opening Ceremony Launch Party. Photo: Max Lakner/BFA.com
Sita Abellan Where: Esprit for Opening Ceremony Launch Party. Photo: Max Lakner/BFA.com
Faustina Rose, Johnny Cassanova Where: Esprit for Opening Ceremony Launch Party. Photo: Max Lakner/BFA.com
Chanel Westcoast Where: Esprit for Opening Ceremony Launch Party. Photo: Max Lakner/BFA.com
Chloe Wise, Logan Jackson, Jake Levy Where: Esprit for Opening Ceremony Launch Party. Photo: Max Lakner/BFA.com
Bebe Rexha Where: Esprit for Opening Ceremony Launch Party. Photo: Max Lakner/BFA.com
Adrianne Ho, Amber Glaseie Where: Esprit for Opening Ceremony Launch Party. Photo: Max Lakner/BFA.com
Dilone Where: Esprit for Opening Ceremony Launch Party. Photo: Max Lakner/BFA.com
Ira Mitchell, Aton Ibe Where: Esprit for Opening Ceremony Launch Party. Photo: Max Lakner/BFA.com
Kelsey Margera, Petra Collins, Lumia Nocito, Barbie Ferreira, Alma Alceser Where: Esprit for Opening Ceremony Launch Party. Photo: Max Lakner/BF... Kelsey Margera, Petra Collins, Lumia Nocito, Barbie Ferreira, Alma Alceser Where: Esprit for Opening Ceremony Launch Party. Photo: Max Lakner/BFA.com
Nakisa, Tinashe Where: Esprit for Opening Ceremony Launch Party. Photo: Max Lakner/BFA.com
1 / 18

Tags:

  • fashions
  • fame
  • opening ceremony
  • aziz ansari
  • tinashe
  • party chat
  • humberto leon
  • carol lim
  • new york fashion week spring 2017
  • esprit
  • More

More Galleries

met gala 2023 May 2, 2023
Met Gala 2023: All the Looks  See all the dresses, some on-theme and some, well, not so much — honoring Karl Lagerfeld at the Met Gala. 
By Brooke LaMantia
oscars 2023 Mar. 12, 2023
Oscars Red Carpet 2023: Every Look  Rihanna! Florence Pugh! Michelle Yeoh! They’re all here. 
celebrity Feb. 19, 2023
All the Best Looks From the 2023 BAFTAs Red Carpet  Florence Pugh, Barry Keoghan, and Angela Bassett brought color to the red carpet. 
grammys 2023 Feb. 5, 2023
Every Look From the 2023 Grammys Beyoncé, Taylor Swift, Harry Styles, Lizzo, Bad Bunny, Adele, Doja Cat, Jack Harlow, Mary J. Blige, Sam Smith, and more.
By Brooke LaMantia
Jan. 10, 2023
All the Looks From the 2023 Golden Globes  Sheryl Lee Ralph, Jenna Ortega, Jessica Chastain, Julia Garner, Jeremy Allen White, Angela Bassett, and more. 
parties! Sept. 23, 2022
Katie Holmes, Chloë Sevigny, and More of the Bestest Party Pics This Week  Chanel, Mejuri, and more celebrate. 
parties! Sept. 16, 2022
Doja Cat, Lil Nas X, and More of the Bestest Party Pics This Week  Fendi, Frame, and Coach all celebrated NYFW. 
emmys 2022 Sept. 12, 2022
Emmys 2022: All the Red Carpet Looks  Updating: What Hollywood is wearing to the 2022 Primetime Emmy Awards. 
By Olivia Luppino
nyfw spring 2023 Sept. 9, 2022
Gigi Hadid, Chlöe Bailey, and More of the Bestest Party Pics of the Week  Saks Fifth Avenue, Longchamp, and more celebrate the beginning of NYFW. 
rip Sept. 9, 2022
The Queen Sure Did Love to Color-Coordinate  Monochrome for decades. 
red carpet Sept. 6, 2022
The Venice Film Festival Is a Major Fashion Event  Valentino and Gucci and Armani, oh my. 
red carpet June 5, 2022
All the Best Looks at the 2022 MTV Movie and TV Awards  Sydney Sweeney, Vanessa Hudgens, Jay Ellis, and more! 
parties! May 20, 2022
The Bestest Party Looks of the Week  Harry Styles > everyone! 
parties! May 13, 2022
The Bestest Party Looks of the Week  Bury me in Dove Cameron’s Saint Sintra skirt. 
parties! May 6, 2022
The Bestest Party Looks of the Week  Cue the Met Gala after-party FOMO. 
met gala 2022 May 2, 2022
Met Gala 2022: All the Looks [Photos]  Billie Eilish, Kim Kardashian, Michelle Yeoh, Hailey Bieber, Megan Thee Stallion, Cardi B, Blake Lively, and more. 
parties! Apr. 29, 2022
The Bestest Party Looks of the Week  This one goes to Olivia Rodrigo and her sweater vest. 
parties! Apr. 22, 2022
The Bestest Party Looks of the Week  “Fuck those Zoom tops.” 
celebrity style Apr. 18, 2022
The Best Looks From Coachella 2022  From Harry Styles’s sparkling Gucci set to Megan Thee Stallion’s metallic bodysuit. 
style Apr. 13, 2022
A Look Inside the New Museum’s Spring Gala  Featuring all the best looks. 
  • Style
  • Self
  • Culture
  • Power
  • About The Cut
  • About New York Magazine
  • Newsletters
  • Help
  • Contact
  • Press
  • Media Kit
  • We’re Hiring
  • Privacy
  • Terms
  • Ad Choices
  • Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information
  • Accessibility
The Cut is a Vox Media Network. © 2023 Vox Media, LLC. All rights reserved.