Thom Browne holds a ‘Teddy Talk’ in playful toy-themed show

By JOCELYN NOVECK
AP National Writer

NEW YORK (AP) — Designer Thom Browne launched Met Gala weekend in New York with a hugely inventive fashion show that was one of his most fanciful extravaganzas yet. The human audience was supplemented by 500 stuffed teddy bears, sitting in tiny chairs in neat rows, all dressed in classic Browne gray suits, ready to hear a motivational “Teddy Talk.” Browne, the consummate showman designer who usually shows in Paris, sought to educate the New York crowd — both the bears and the humans — about finding one’s authentic self through one’s “toy version.” Dual processions of 25 adults and their whimsical toy versions came together at the end, with models laughing and talking on the runway.