By Mark La Monica
I took a flier and walked into The Salon for the Neil Barrett show. Why not, right? Let's give someone I never heard of the chance to be written about by me.
Turns out this was a grand decision. Not so much because of the clothes but rather the experience. Plenty of things occurred that I'd never seen before.
We begin with the seating, which were comprised entirely of aluminum bleachers. Just like the ones you sat in for Little League baseball games. After I few minutes, I found myself fighting the urge to stand up and chant "DE-FENSE! DE-FENSE!"
The show was scheduled to start at 1 p.m., which really means 1:35ish. At 2 p.m., with Vera Wang next up, a man got on the house mike and announced that the show would start soon. Something about waiting for a bus. He then assured us that Vera Wang wouldn't start until after Neil Barrett finished and that we'd all be able to get in.
Never heard a human get on the mike like that before a show. Usually, they just keep playing music.
Once the show began, there were empty seats. In the front row. In the middle rows. In the back rows. Even the standing room section was practically empty. It was like going to Stan the Man's Baseball Land in the Bronx when the Yankees are on the road.
It's customary to clap at the end of a fashion show, regardless of your opinion of the clothes. This applause felt forced.
As for the clothes, they were OK. Neil Barrett went with all black, silver, white and camel. Some call it a design concept. I call it getting a good deal on a particular color of fabric.