What the hell, 2012. No really, who do you think you are? I guess that Zombie Bath Salt Apocalypse went to your head. And “Call Me Maybe.” Maybe. That happened. But meggings? You’re leaving 2013 with meggings?

What are meggings? Oh, you know, what a casual dude might buy at LululeMAN if he’s feeling too bloated for his skinny jeans. And if you think I’m joking, think again. I never joke about spandex. This is happening.

The implications of meggings stretch far beyond bunched boxer-lines and junk in the front. Meggings could disrupt the very foundation of gender dynamics as we know and love (meh?) them.

Now don’t get me wrong here. I LOVE men. I have binders full of men. But there used to be certain things that we had and they didn’t. Sure, this may be the same argument men had against women for things like college, equal pay and voting rights. But if we don’t draw the line somewhere, will it ever end? They’ve already taken no-polish pedicures. What’s next, sweater dresses?!

There’s nothing wrong with cross-gender fashion. Will I sample from the men’s department now and again? Sure. Do I like the way a billowy men’s shirt makes me feel so small and yet so strong? You bet. Have I been known to wear men’s cologne just to smell that sweet musk while I watch Tim Riggins drink beers in bed? Who hasn’t. And yet when given the opportunity to do the same with the bounty that womenswear has to offer, men have chosen to try the leggings? The bastard child of pants and tights? That which is capable of making even the most toned of thighs beg for a longer sweater to hide from the traitorous sheen of spandex?

You know what, go ahead, boys. It’s 2013. Run with them—you’ll find them to be quite comfortable for that. You’ve been doing pretty well with skinny jeans, so maybe it’ll work out for you. Who knows!

I’m reminded of a storybook I had as a child. Maybe you know it.

If You Give a Man Some Meggings…

They won’t have pockets, so he’ll need something to put his wallet in.

He won’t be used to carrying a bag, so it should have a nice, long strap.

He won’t want to call attention to the bag, so it should be small and sleek. Like a purse. Someone will call it a murse, even if he asks them not to.

It would be silly to carry a murse for just a wallet, so he’ll need other things to fill it with, like a hairbrush and some lip balm. Perhaps some hand lotion. Mascara. A nail file. Tampons.

Wearing meggings will make him notice things he never has, like how his left calf is slightly bigger than his right, but his meggings will be so comfortable that he’ll still want to wear them and only them.

He’ll love that he can eat as much as he wants in his meggings, so he’ll probably start to gain a few pounds here and there.

One day he’ll have to wash his meggings, and he’ll notice that none of his other pants fit.

He’ll feel insulted when his girlfriend says it’s not the meggings that make him look fat, and his girlfriend won’t understand what she did wrong. Or how she ended up dating this dude who wears meggings.

He will start to eye the men’s shirts and oversized blazers in his girlfriend’s closet. He’ll probably even try on a pair of her boyfriend jeans.

2013, folks! Meggings, murses and the deterioration—or reaffirmation—of traditional American gender roles.

(If you or a loved one has been affected by meggings, don’t wait. Call 1-800-TOO-TITE today.)

 
Read our predictions on literature, Broadway, politics and fashion.

Aaron Emanuel Salon on the Upper East Side is not only a salon where you get a high level of customer service and the latest in hair trends—you will also be intellectually stimulated.

Before coloring, cutting or styling a client’s hair, salon workers ask, “Who do you want to embody?” If you bring a photo of how you want your hair to look, they will replicate it down to the precise detail.

The salon is open seven days a week to serve patrons no matter what their schedule is. Their clientele includes visitors and newcomers to the city as well as native New Yorkers. How often people come in “varies from three times a week to once a month,” Emanuel said.

For this stylist, the art of making ordinary people look like celebrities is in his blood, and his passion for hair took flight at a young age.

“My mother is a hairdresser, and my father is a barber,” Emanuel said. His mother has styled hair for the majority of her life in their Brooklyn home.

A French stylist trained Emanuel, and he set himself apart by memorizing hair-color formulas and other techniques that most stylists do not know. Before he was a stylist, Emanuel was a high-end jeweler. He has owned his shop for almost two years and said that his styling technique as well as the people he has hired to work at the salon have helped it stand apart. Some of the stylists who work at the salon have been in the business for more than 30 years, while others are just starting out on their hair-styling journey.

“It’s very modern and has a different kind of vibe than other salons,” said Ana Cibotari, assistant to Emanuel. She said that the products at the salon are top-notch, and she’s glad to be working in a friendly, learning environment.

When he’s not at the salon, Emanuel is like any other family man. He loves to spend time with his wife and kids and to take them to museums as well as doing their hair. His favorite part of owning the salon is the interaction that he gets from running into patrons.

“I see us starting another place in the near future,” Emanuel said.

For more information, visit aaronemanuel.com.

It’s peppy and preppy, it’s white and bright, it’s cute and candy-colored—it’s the brand-spanking-new C. Wonder flagship store at Columbus Circle’s Time Warner Center! Listen, anytime you walk into a shop and are greeted by a commanding life-size figure of a zebra striped with all the hues of the rainbow, you know you’re off the beaten path.

What total fun this store is. Lots of upbeat women’s wear and sparkly gewgaws (sorry, no men’s or kids’ stuff here)—plus a nicely edited selection of home goods and even a teeny section for pets. Ah, animals, my soft spot and passion—let’s begin with them, shall we?

In addition to doggy food bowls, there are fuchsia-pink-and-green-striped collars—just the thing for the preppy pooch; $16. If the color combo’s a bit too estrogenic for your Fido, consider the red-navy-and-yellow-striped versions. As with so much of the human clothing and accessories here, these come emblazoned with the fanciful C. Wonder logo.

For your human family, there is a smattering of serve ware, tabletop clocks, thermoses and other light goods along those lines. And then—out of nowhere—there are roller skates. Sized for women, the white-leather skates (emblazoned with the store’s logo in vibrant green) come equipped with blazingly bright fuchsia and green wheels; $75, please.

In more quotidian footwear, there’s the cheetah-print ballet flat with a neat little leathery bow at the vamp fastened with a tiny gold-metal “C” logo; $128. I was glad to see the often only seasonally available rubbery flip-flops here—perhaps, like me, you find them great for padding around the apartment year-round. These come in black, royal or peach, with the slender thong the same color as the sole, which is embossed on top with the store’s … you guessed it. The ’flops are $18. Since I just got raspberry and parrot-green-soled versions with matching “jelly” thongs at Jack’s 99 Cent Store for … you guessed it again, I think I’ll pass on these. Reminds me: We will finish up with the pen I recently alluded to getting at Jack’s along with a few other kibbles ’n’ bits very soon—probably next week.

Back to the present: If you love animal prints and pops of color, including jolting neons, you will love the clothing here. An excellent addition for any wardrobe, preppy or otherwise, is the leopard-print cardigan in a creamy blend of cotton and nylon with a touch of angora. This fine-gauge garment, highlighted by shiny gold-tone buttons, can be worn solo or over a light top; $88.

Skinny-jeans fans will love the stretchy cotton versions here in bright solids, including an especially juicy tangerine, plus bold patterns and more animal prints; $88. Surprisingly, while seemingly every other brand plasters its logo on jeans, the only one I can find on these is discreetly embroidered inside the waistband. Well done!

You undoubtedly use a hangar-size tote for your everyday needs, but for a dinner out or perhaps a holiday office party, you might want to opt for something that, while still roomy, is really elegant and lovely. I refer to the fuchsia suede fold-over clutch that sports a lushly fringed zipper-pull tassel. Measuring approximately 12 inches square in its unfolded state, the clutch is tagged at $128.

By the way, there’s a $10 charge to have anything that is indeed monogrammable monogrammed here. You can save a fortune, of course, if your name happens to be C. Wonder.

Photo Courtesy of Jennifer Marie Puglia (via Flickr)

What’s acceptable fashion for a 3-year-old? What about a 6-year-old? Where do you draw the line? The topic is recurrently explored on TLC’s reality television series, Toddlers & Tiaras, which has been extremely controversial since its 2009 debut. It’s also causing fallout well beyond the realm of television, reaffirming the notion—for some—that any publicity is good publicity.

According to TLC, Toddlers & Tiaras “showcases the competitive world of child pageants, as three families have their children judged on beauty, personality and costumes.” The show revolves around the high tension lives of child beauty queens, and their families, as they navigate the pageant circuit and its multitudinous complexities, many of them still young enough to someday forget this phase of their lives.

Episodes, frequently named after pageants, boast such titles as “Beautiful Dolls,” “Viva Las Vegas” and “Tiny Miss USA.” These names speak for themselves, as the young girls are intended to simultaneously replicate, not only hyper-sexualized adult women, but also flawless playthings.

One former contestant on the show, 6-year-old Maddy Verst, now finds herself at the center of a controversy sparked by the series. In one, now infamous, televised pageant appearance, her mother, Lindsay Jackson, dressed the young girl as Dolly Parton, “complete with figure-enhancing padded bra and sculpting underwear,” reports the Huffington Post. Viewers and child experts everywhere were outraged, but perhaps no one more so than the girl’s father (allegedly).

Maddy’s father, Bill Verst, is now claiming the girl’s mother sexually exploited her by dressing her in the outfit and is trying to gain full custody of the child. For the foreseeable future, Jackson is prohibited from signing Maddy up for more pageants, while the case remains pending.

Jackson extrapolated from her daughter’s situation in a statement, saying this case could start a precedent in which girls were not able to reach their full potential, for instance, being prohibited from becoming “gold medal winners.”

“We wouldn’t have Miss America, we wouldn’t have Miss USA,” Jackson told Fox News.

One week after Maddy appeared as a racy Dolly Parton, another 3-year-old contestant appeared as prostitute Julia Roberts circa Pretty Woman. 

Even beyond ascertaining what fashion is acceptable for young children, what should the repercussions be of violating these standards? When a parent has entire control over a child’s wardrobe, and “violates” that control, is this an ethical conundrum—a source of potential child endangerment—as Verst’s custody battle suggests, or simply a matter of questionable taste? Many defenders argue no harm could possibly come to the girl, but how can anyone determine what the longterm fallout might be for an easily scandalized child model?

The Toddlers & Tiaras debacle is reminiscent of the controversy that emerged last year when the French high fashion magazine Vogue featured a 10-year-old model in skimpy, cutaway clothing, sparking debate about fashion advertisement and the sexualization of young girls. Her poses were called “oddly adult” by many, reported ABC News, further complicating the shoot’s intent. As in the case of Maddy Verst, the controversy took a serious toll on the girl’s family.

ABC  reported Veronika Loubry, fashion designer and mother to the 10-year-old high fashion model, swooped in to defend her daughter. Many would argue, when a child is young and naive, a parent’s job is to defend and not exploit. But are the two mutually exclusive? If anything, the Toddlers & Tiaras fallout reveals the line is certainly a blurred one.

The urban cloak of invisibility

by Jeanne Martinet

He came out of nowhere.

There I was getting my hair cut, absorbed in the blissful experience of being pampered and beautified, when suddenly I noticed a tall, chiseled man in the mirror right over my head. Hello? But he wasn’t looking at me, he was scrutinizing himself, and he was talking to my stylist.

“So, Brigitta…” The stranger smoothed his almost nonexistent hair (which looked like a crew cut that could hardly be cut further) back above his right ear. With his head cocked, he continued to study himself in the mirror. “Do you think I’ll be ready to come back next week?” he said. “I do want the top to be—I want to have enough for you to work with.” Who the hell is this guy? Do salons need bouncers now?

“Ah, sure,” Brigitta replied in her elegant Latvian accent, “You will probably be ready, I think.” She paused in mid-air over my head while she gave him an obligatory scan. One of her hands held the scissors and the other the comb.
I gaped at the man. “Hey! I’m sitting right here!” I wanted to yell. He was still gazing at himself in my mirror, his face about two feet above mine, and he was turning his head this way and that, touching his hair. Brigitta started snipping away at me again, trying to ignore him. He was obviously a regular customer, so she could not very easily tell him to leave.

“But you see this here…” he said, and he brushed his hand over the top of his bristly head and smiled devilishly at himself. I looked pointedly up at him, my eyebrows raised as far as they would go, in what I hoped was questioning disdain. At last his eyes met mine, and I detected a faint hint of embarrassment. “I’ll come back,” he said quickly.

After he left, Brigitte apologized and said the front desk should have waylaid the man. But I couldn’t help wondering: What was it that made me invisible? Until I finally got his attention, I was just an object, like the chair. I do not believe he was acting primarily out of a sense of entitlement, like someone who butts in front of you because they believe their business is more urgent than yours. It was simply that he was oblivious.

Obliviousness is not uncommon in urban life. We’ve all had the experience of waiting for a cab when someone steps right in front of us and grabs it. But the truth is, most of these taxi thieves are not thinking, “If I move quickly, I can get that cab first.” They really do not notice the other people waiting.

As New Yorkers we constantly need to cut out noise and stimuli or go crazy, so we develop tunnel vision, and everything nonessential tends to recede into the background—including, sometimes, other people.

Sometimes we can’t see others even when we really want to. Recently I heard about a friend and his wife who were both trying to meet up on 42nd Street. They were walking in opposite directions toward each other, on the same side of the street, yet they walked right past each other without realizing it. The crowded city itself affects awareness.

But certainly there are situations in which we are more prone to becoming invisible. When we hand our bodies over to be worked on—primped, trimmed, massaged, whatever—there is a sort of disappearing that happens, since we become almost entirely passive. We become a thing upon which something is being done.

Isn’t this why manicurists talk to each other while they are doing your nails? And (ever more increasingly, it seems) why checkout clerks talk to each other while they are checking you out? You, the customer, are not real. You are a shadow, a blur going by.

Of course, I could (as is my wont) blame the salon incident on the insensitivity of our technology-saturated society—on the theory that everyone is so insular that others seem just a part of each person’s own reflection in the mirror. But I suspect it might be simpler: The guy was a classic narcissist.

Certainly, while my Narcissus was obsessing over his hair, his reflection and mine merged in at least one way. Whether it was because Brigitta was distracted by his interruption or she was influenced by looking at his cropped head, she ended up clipping away much longer on me than necessary.

So now, thanks to this short-haired interloper, I have much shorter hair than I wanted. And, funnily enough, invisibility no longer seems such a bad idea.

Jeanne Martinet, aka Miss Mingle, is the author of seven books on social interaction. Her latest book is a novel, Etiquette for the End of the World. You can contact her at JeanneMartinet.com.

Brad Goreski has been captivated by the world of fashion since picking up his first issue of Vogue at the age of 12. Decked in a signature blazer, bow tie and Oliver Peoples frames and muttering catchphrases and unforgettable one-liners, he was the breakout star of Bravo’s The Rachel Zoe Project,” working as her good-natured assistant. After a highly publicized split last year, Brad has struck out on his own, picking up celebrity clients like Jessica Alba, styling magazine photo shoots and starring in his own show, It’s a Brad, Brad World, on the same network.

Whether it comes to doling out style advice or walking the red carpet in sequined shoes, he is constantly proving that taking bold risks is always in fashion, on and off the runway.

At what address would you like to live?

147 Mercer St., in room 214.

When did you first feel like a New Yorker? What happened?

When I interned at Vogue. I was 24 and living in the West Village down the street from Sarah Jessica Parker. It was all very Carrie Bradshaw.

What is your favorite watering hole for lunch? For dinner?

Lunch at Fred’s, Dinner at ABC Kitchen.

What newspaper column do you read first in the morning?

WWD.

Who is the smartest New Yorker you know?

Anderson Cooper…even though I don’t know him. I think he’s smart.

Who is the funniest?

My boyfriend, Gary Janetti.

Who is your favorite dinner partner?

My girls: Danielle, Tracy, Annebet and Casey.

What’s your favorite New York sound?

Good music in a club. I love a dance party.

What’s your most embarrassing New York moment?

Being told I couldn’t come into the club Avenue because I was wearing shorts. They were Thom Browne!

What’s your worst-dressed New York moment?

Setting sail on the Queen Mary 2 wearing a full Tom Ford for Gucci western look, including GG logo belt and silk neck scarf.

What’s your favorite transportation moment in the city?

Anything involving an Escalade.

What is the hardest part about living in New York?

How expensive it is to live here on a daily basis.

Who do you most admire?

James Lescesne. He is one of the founders of the Trevor Project and I admire how much he does for other people. He’s a true living angel.

What brought you to New York?

Desire to work in fashion.

What do you want to be when you grow up?

A back-up dancer for Lady Gaga. •

Compiled by Allen Houston

Friday, September 17

Russian Revolution—Poet Alex Galper introduces Battleship Potemkin, considered one of the world’s most influential films. The Sergei Eisenstein film commemorates the uprising aboard a battleship, one of the pivotal events of the Russian Revolution of 1905. Rubin Museum of Art, 150 W. 17th St., 212-620-5000; 9:30 p.m., Free with $7 bar minimum.

Saturday, September 18

New Pop Artist—Asia Society presents Yoshitomo Nara: Nobody’s Fool, an exhibition of the iconic Japanese pop artist and his relationship to rock and punk music. More than 100 works, including drawings, paintings, sculptures and installation, are on display. Asia Society, 725 Park Ave., 212-288-6400; 11 a.m.-6 p.m., $10.

Dance the Night Away—The New York Swing Dance Society will host its first dance of the fall at St. Jean the Baptiste Church. An hour-long dance lesson for beginners will take place at 7 p.m., followed by a night of dancing. St. Jean the Baptiste Church, 184. E. 76th St., 212-696-9737; 8 p.m.-12 a.m., $15.

Latin Caribbean Sound—Son De Madre, a group that mixes the Latin Caribbean tradition with a modern feel, kicks off the 35th season of the Carnegie Hall Neighbohood Concert series. The group brings their combination of salsa, boleros and funk music. El Museo Del Barrio, 120 5th Ave., 212-831-7272; 4 p.m., Free.

Monday, September 20

Dystopian Author—Margaret Atwood, author of The Handmaid’s Tale, returns to the Poetry Corner to read from The Year of the Flood, her most recent novel of speculative fiction. 92nd Street Y, Lexington Avenue and 92nd Street, 212-415-5500; 8 p.m., $27.

Tree Inspiration—Arboreal presents a striking variety of paintings, photographs, drawings and sculptures that use trees as both a subject and for artistic material. Four artists portray the forest as an aesthetic inspiration, as well as a metaphor for larger environmental issues. The Arsenal Gallery in Central Park, 5th Avenue and 64th Street, www.nycgovparks.org; 9 a.m.-5 p.m., Free.

Tuesday, September 21

Famous Fashionistas—Relive New York’s history through the ever-evolving styles of its most famous fashionable females. Notorious and Notable collects wardrobes and accessories from upper crust royalty to its most famous burlesque dancer. Museum of the City of New York, 1220 5th Ave., 212-534-1672; 10 a.m.-5 p.m., $10.

Wednesday, September 22

Animal Drawing—The American Museum of Natural History invites aspiring artists of all levels to participate in a museum art class in animal drawing. For eight consecutive Wednesdays, participants will sketch from world-class dioramas and displays such as the Tyrannosaurus Rex. American Museum of Natural History, Central Park West at West 79th Street, www.amnh.org/programs; 7-9 p.m., $160 (materials not included).

Thursday, September 23

Visionary Light—Heat Waves in a Swamp: The Paintings of Charles Burfield compiles more than 100 watercolors, drawings and oils on canvas, capturing the nature-lover’s expressionistic view of light and the environment that surrounded him. Whitney Museum of American Art, 945 Madison Ave., 212-570-3600; 11 a.m.-6 pm, $18.

Artists in the Kitchen—Hell’s Kitchen Artist in Studio Tours (HK: ArtiST) offers self-guided tours featuring artists and performers in places like their homes, studios, galleries and theaters. Participating artists include those with well-established careers as well as those who are just emerging in the art world. Through May 23. Visit www.artistsinthekitchen.com for details. Hell’s Kitchen, between West 34th and 59th streets west of Eighth Avenue, Free.

Spring Ballet—Ballet Academy East’s student company presents its pre-professional division in renowned works of ballet, such as Sans Souci, Cinderella’s Ball and Un Petit Meneut. The performance is part of the “Family Time” series. The Gerald W. Lynch Theater at John Jay College, 899 10th Ave., 212-237-8005; 7 p.m., $35 to $55.

Musical Readings—Top emerging composers selected by the American Composers Orchestra have their works read. These seven composers are the winners of the 19th annual Underwood New Music Readings. After the readings, one of the composers will receive a $15,000 commission to write a new work to be performed by the American Composers Orchestra. Miller Theatre at Columbia University, 116th Street and Broadway, 212-977-8495; 10 a.m., Free.

Young Talent—Hear six young string quartets who have received coaching from members of The Juilliard String Quartet. The best performances by the young quartets are featured at two concerts at the end of the week-long seminar. Juilliard’s Paul Hall, 155 W. 65th St., 212-769-7406; 3:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m., Free.

Comic Drama—Paul Osborn’s Morning’s at Seven is a 1939 comic drama depicting the amusingly dramatic lives of four sisters and the husbands of three of them. Their lives grow complicated when Homer, one of the sister’s sons, bring his girlfriend Myrtle home to meet his family. The West End Theatre, Church of St. Paul and St. Andrew, 263 W. 86th St., 212-868-4444; 7:30 p.m., $10 to $18.

Saturday, May 22

Block Party—The 100th Street Block Association holds its annual Block Fair, featuring food, music and flea market treasures. All proceeds go toward the preservation of the street’s trees and flowers. West 100th Street between West End Avenue and Riverside Drive, 212-663-0812; 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Free.

Benefit—The University Glee Club of New York City presents a concert to benefit the Holy Trinity Neighborhood Center and its weekly Neighborhood Supper. The club, an all-male singing group founded in 1894, performs a variety of selections, ranging from traditional college songs to Broadway musicals. The Church of the Holy Trinity, 316 E. 88th St., 212-289-4100; 7:30 p.m., $25.

Classical Gems—The Chamber Orchestra of New York presents its spring concert, “Italian Heartstrings.” The program features the U.S. premieres of Respighi’s Aria for Strings and Suite for Strings. The orchestra also performs Scarlatti’s Il Giardino di Rose, Di Vittorio’s Preludio and Fantasia from Sinfonia No. 1 and Puccini’s Crisantemi. The orchestra performs little-known gems of classical music. The Church of St. Jean Baptiste, 184 E. 76th St., 866-468-7619; 8 p.m., $20 to $30.

Sunday, May 23

New Dance, New Music—Join music director Faycal Karouj, composer Thierry Esciach and choreographer Benjamin Millepied as they discuss their new collaboration, Why am I not where you are. The program also features excerpts from the piece. The Guggenheim Museum, 1071 Fifth Ave., 212-423-3500; 7:30 p.m., $10 to $30.

Monday, May 24

Turkish Filmmakers—Enjoy one of three days of Turkish films, organized by The Turkish Foundation of Cinema and Audiovisual Culture. The first day of the event includes The Breath, a war drama about a group of soldiers guarding a military post near the Iraqi border of Turkey. Films scheduled for the other two days include Romantic Comedy, Jolly Life, A Place Called Esrefpasa and The Girl with the Red Scarf. Village East Cinemas, 189 Second Ave., 212-529-6799; 8:30 p.m., Free with reservation.

Brahms on Monday—A concert features Johannes Brahms’ Liebeslieder and Neue Liebeslieder, Op 52 and 65, for a four-part vocal ensemble and four-hands piano. The concert is part of a series of concerts on the fourth Monday of every month, featuring members of the Holy Trinity Bach Choir, with Andrew Alexrod and Charity Wicks on piano. Holy Trinity Lutheran Church, Central Park West and West 65th Street; 6:30 p.m., $10 to $15.

Tuesday, May 25

Dance Till You Drop—Celebrate 75 years of dance at the 92nd Street Y with dancing and DJ-ing by Andrea Miller/Gallim Dance, DJ Matty Matt, Nicholas Leichter Dance, Bill Young and Dixie Fun Lee. The event includes cocktails, hors d’oeuvres, dance performances and the opportunity for guests to dance to catchy disco music, complete with a disco ball. Costumes are encouraged. The 92nd Street Y Harkness Dance Center, 1395 Lexington Ave., 212-415-5500; 8 p.m. to 2 a.m., $10 to $25.

Green Fashion—The Museum at FIT presents“Eco-Fashion: Going Green,” featuring the work of designers who use, produce and promote environmentally friendly products. The exhibition emphasizes how each stage of fashion production has environmental consequences. Runs through Nov. 13. The Museum at FIT, Seventh Avenue and West 27th Street, 212-217-4530; noon to 8 p.m., Free.

Wednesday, May 26

Word for Word Author—Gretchen Rubin shares tips from her yearlong experiment, The Happiness Project: Or, Why I Spent a Year Trying to Sing in the Morning, Clean My Closets, Fight Right, Read Aristotle, and Generally Have More Fun. This event is part of the “Word for Word Author” reading series, featuring discussions with bestselling authors and signings of their books. The Bryant Park Reading Room, 42nd Street side of Bryant Park; 12:30 p.m., Free.

Thursday, May 27

Resurrect the Dead—Relive the era of the Grateful Dead at The New-York Historical Society, when fans and experts share stories about the band and its relationship with the city. Discussion moderator Gary Lambert is co-host of “Tales from the Golden Road,” a weekly talk show on the Grateful Dead Channel (Sirius 32 and XM 57), and editor of the Grateful Dead Almanac. Other panelists include Pete Fornatale, Carol Brightman and Lenny Kaye. The event is part of an exhibit about the band, on view until July 4. The New-York Historical Society, 170 Central Park West, 212-873-3400; 6:30 p.m., $20.

Young Artists—Students from the Manhattan School of Music, the Juilliard School, the Mannes College New School for Music and the Lucy Moses School for Music perform a program of lesser-known music. Selections include folk songs, classical pieces and Yiddish theater songs. The YIVO Institute for Jewish Research, 15 W. 16th St., 213-246-6080; 5:30 p.m., $10.

World Premieres—“Face the Music,” the Kaufman Center’s teen music ensemble, performs Nico Muhly’s Honest Music and How About Now, while SIGNAL, a large New York ensemble, performs the world premiere of Muhly’s Stabat Mater and the U.S. premiere of Sir Harrison Birtwistle’s The Corridor. Muhly is slated to appear at the event. The Merkin Concert Hall at Kaufman Center, 129 W. 67th St., 212-501-3303; 7:30 p.m., $25 to $30.

East Side Talent—The Carter Burden Center for the Aging presents Sally Weiss’s solo show, Sculpture and Assemblage. The exhibit features sculptures, mixed media, carvings and drawings. “I became an artist to make myself happy, and my art allows me to express this joy,” says Weiss, an East Sider. “My art allows me to feel worthwhile, and I am thrilled to exhibit at this fascinating gallery for older artists who have so much to give.” Runs until June 26. Gallery 307, 307 Seventh Ave., 212-879-7400; 6 to 8 p.m., Free.

Decked out in designs by students in the Fashion Institute of Technology’s pet product design and marketing professional development certificate program, the 14 model dogs married New Yorkers’ love of pets and fashion. “Last Bark For Bryant Park,” produced for the second year by undergraduates majoring in advertising and market communications, was held the evening of April 12 at the Fashion Institute of Technology, on West 27th Street.

“It went very well, once the lights went out,” said assistant professor Linda Finnerty, whose class helped put on the show.

“Pets are a big part of our culture,” said Dr. Joyce Brown, the college’s president, whose male bichon frise, Bebe, closed the show by strutting down the cat—dog?—walk in a miniature tuxedo, complete with top hat.

Bebe closes the show in a miniature tuxedo, complete with top hat. Photo by Daniel S. Burnstein

The pet industry, she pointed out, is a $4 billion industry.

“I think it’s worth exploring, to try to tap into something that brings so much joy to people,” Brown said.

“It’s a great opportunity for people who are in the program to display their best product possible,” said Joan Volpe, managing coordinator of FIT’s center for professional studies. “These people have all been to college, they’ve put in lots of hard work, and it’s their chance to expose themselves and their work to potential customers.”

At the end of the night, nine of the 25 designs on display were chosen by Mario DiFante, executive director of Pet Fashion Week New York, to accompany the show on tour to Japan and Brazil later this year.

“It was great to see one of my outfits on a real live dog. I hadn’t seen that before,” said designer Lisa Barnes, whose Turtlebacks organic wool knit sweater was among those selected by DiFante. “I was very excited to be chosen. [The show] is such an opportunity, because I’m just getting started.”

Designs were done by students in FIT’s pet product design and marketing professional development certificate program. Photo by Daniel S. Burnstein