Givenchy show hits all the right notes

Having a fashion show in the shadow of Ground Zero, on the 14th anniversary of the Sept. 11 terror attacks, is a bold gesture that can go very wrong.

But Givenchy's showing of its Spring 2016 collection in lower Manhattan on Friday struck all the right notes, at turns reverent, reflective, and romantic.

In the weeks that followed 9/11, there was a deep feeling of community in New York City, it's often brusque inhabitants bound together by grief. Riccardo Tisci, Givenchy's creative director evoked a similar sense of common humanity long before the first models walked the runway, giving away hundreds of free tickets so members of the general public could see the show.

While the fashion students and neighborhood residents who nabbed the free invites didn't exactly get to mingle with the fashion elite, they nevertheless were able to share the same space and view the same spectacle as celebrities like Jennifer Hudson, designer Alexander Wang, stylist Rachel Zoe, and, Tisci bestie, Kanye West.

Great effort was taken to balance the glittering with the grounded, the ethereal with the down to earth. In a program note written as a letter to Tischi, artistic director Marina Abramovic wrote "the 11th of September is the most sad day in recent American history ... I want to create something respectful and humble.''

With the Freedom Tower a somber but glittering backdrop, Abramovic created a set that resembled a rustic village, with shanty-like structures, benches and runways made from recycled materials and debris. It was a living and breathing art installation as well. While chanting and religious music played in the background, a man dressed in black and white walked meditatively around the circuitous set, reminding viewers to live in the moment. A woman stood atop a structure as a pipe poured water on her left arm, symbolizing the cleansing of the spirit. A man held on to two trees, leaning on them for for support and energy.

The show started roughly 45 minutes late, apparently awaiting the arrival of West who made a grand entrance with his wife, Kim Kardashian. It may have been worth it to wait on a rapper who calls himself Yeezus. If the show had taken place on Sept. 10, it no doubt would have been rained out. Instead, the evening sky was crystal clear and picture perfect.

Black and white were the colors of the night. Another dominant theme was lingerie-like attire meant to be worn at the break of day. There were lacy, negligee-like tops paired with wide-legged trousers, and palazzo pants dotted with panels of filigree.

There was a blurring of the feminine and the masculine, literally. Male models strutted across the wooden planks in tunic-like tops, prep school shorts, and jackets with patent leather pocket stripes. Women wore pin striped suits and tuxedo jackets atop skirts dappled in peacock feathers.

Among the show stoppers was a black gown whose skirt was made up of voluminous fur balls, and a trio of fashion warriors whose faces were covered in masks made of lace and pearls. They wore their skin-tight sheaths like armor, covered in leather or gold spikes.

The show ended with the models taking a final walk to the strains of Ave Maria. It was a fitting ending to a show that attempted to celebrate beauty, while paying homage to tragedy, and somehow, pulled it off.