      |
Other stand-out designs for dramatic evening
dressing from Mr Toi include his black silk ‘Diva’ gown with beaded
and embroidered tiger and leopard detailing, a black silk velvet
Versailles gown with a silver beaded Louis XV medallion grand exit
back panel and Ling (again) in a black mink empire waist gown with
front silver-beaded Louis XV musical garland
| Mr Toi’s
collection was only one of two that received a standing ovation
from the audience |
embroidery and butterfly wing-pleated black tulle detailing. And
Miss Ling showed that gown to its best effect by spreading her “wings”
as she sashays down the catwalk. How divine.
The grand finalé of the presentation was
a luxurious black fox and feathers ‘Queen Bee’ wrap jacket paired
with a column-like oriental ball skirt. Did I mention that Mr Toi’s
collection was only one of two that received a standing ovation
from the audience, with the other being the superb effort put forth
by the always deserving Ralph Rucci? The fashion crowd that generally
attends the shows during market week is a tough lot, unlike the
audience on Broadway who now seems to jump out of their seats to
give standing ovations to the most mediocre of shows (shall we talk
about the revival of Gypsy starring Bernadette Peters and
the recently closed money-losing bomb, Taboo?) and the most
talent-less hacks and hams ever to step on a stage. That standing
ovation was earned the hard way, through hard work, constantly refining
his skills and giving the people what they ask for: quality designs
that are worth the time and effort, not to mention the heaps of
money it take to buy one of these pieces.
As always, his menswear designs were there to
highlight the  utmost
beauty of the womenswear pieces, and this time around, it was a
much more cohesive affair. The men’s designs were more modern in
their scope; and Mr Toi showed some very masculinely sexy pieces
here. Best of show include the black silk–satin–organza fitted shirt
paired with the men’s black leather bootleg jean with embroidered
tiger detailing, his testosterone-laced men’s black leather three-quarter
trench coat with high black fox collar (love the leather knapsack,
too), and his amusingly named red mohair plaid ‘Metrosexual’ blazer
and scarf. They represented the full sexualization of men as very
much prevalent in today’s society, but still left them with the illusions of their masculinity intact. He may have been referencing
two very different eras, but Mr Toi made it all work together beautifully.
Once again, Eiji of the Eiji Salon did a beautiful
job with the models’ hair, with Bobbi Brown and her team’s seamless
make-up job adding to the overall classic look that worked so well
with Zang Toi’s designs. The music from Kevin Edwards was as appropriate
as ever. Other factors that added to this presentation’s success include
the exquisite hosiery from Wolford, Zang for the beautiful footwear,
the dazzling diamonds created by Lorraine E. Schwartz and the gorgeous
set design. •
Phillip D. Johnson is features’ editor of Lucire.
 ABOVE
LEFT: Zang Toi fall–winter 2004. INSET:
The designer himself, Zang Toi. FAR
LEFT: Zang Toi and Farrah Fawcett. LEFT:
Patti LaBelle and Zang Toi.
|
@