Queen Latifah, Adrien Brody, Kerry Washington, more stars flock to Thom Browne's NYFW show

NEW YORK — New York Fashion Week saved the best for last.

Stars flocked to Thom Browne's closing NYFW show like the hundreds of white origami birds that dotted the massive runway stage Tuesday night at Hudson Yards' The Shed. As the sounds of birds chirping echoed in the room, so did the shutters of cameras and the flittering around the more than 20 A-list guests who sat front row at the fashion event.

Queen Latifah was the final star to land onto her perch in the front row, joined by partner Eboni Nicholas and seated alongside Adrien Brody, who sat next to top Vogue editor Anna Wintour; Kerry Washington; Peso Pluma; former Vice President Kamala Harris' stepdaughter Ella Emhoff; Eiza Gonzalez; Cara Delevingne; "The Penguin" star Cristin Milioti; Justin Theroux; St. Vincent; "Gilded Age" star Morgan Spector and wife Rebecca Hall; "Severance" star Britt Lower; Evan Mock; Lola Tung; King Princess; Jenna Lyons; Cole Escola and more.

Theroux posed for photos with St. Vincent upon arrival, as well as with Milioti and Escola, who laughed with Spector and Hall. Lyons showed off the inside of her Thom Browne Hector bag, the brand's signature dog-shaped purse: empty, save for her phone.

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Birds of a feather, each star donned their best versions of Thom Browne uniforms, with suiting in gray, black and cream, four-bar socks and jackets, tweed-adorned dresses and striped red, white and blue ties.

Browne is a favorite among the celebrity set, with Brody donning a bespoke three-piece suit from the brand for his Golden Globes best actor win for "The Brutalist" in January. Doechii wore custom Thom Browne to the 2024 Grammys earlier this month as she accepted best rap album, during her performance and on the red carpet.

A Thom Browne fashion show is not the run-of-the-mill runway: He works methodically to showcase his ornate works of art through storytelling, creating a new world through his fashion. It's also an incredibly high-quality production, from the intricate styling of each look in the collection down to the handwritten calligraphy with attendees' names and seat numbers on cardstock seating cards.

"I thought tonight's show was amazing. It was stunning, everyone looked beautiful, the tempo. As usual, Thom Browne brings you into a world that you enjoy being in," Latifah told USA TODAY after the show. A veteran of the front row, Latifah's fashion week essential? "Just have fun."

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"This was a beautiful show. This was my first time seeing Thom Browne, and I loved it," Lower told USA TODAY.

The elaborate, 20-minute show leaned into magical whimsy with an aviary theme that took flight from the locale, high above the sky stories up in a New York building, to the pieces themselves.

Underneath 2,000 white origami birds, suspended in flight above the runway, Browne's vision came to life in a stunning 64-look collection. At a white desk in the center of the runway sit two ornithologists in double-faced wool iterations of the Browne uniform, "ready to observe what's to come," the production notes say. The spotlight is on "two caged love birds" who "long to be free," according to the notes. The birds, like the collection, are "a representation of dreaming and freedom to be."

Models with long fluttering eyelashes made from brightly colored feathers walk with actual birds – herons and magpies – emblazoned on herringbone and houndstooth jackets and dresses. Strong shoulders and nipped-in waists make way for exaggerated proportions of classic silhouettes. Multi-layered dresses like cocoons float down the runway, while oversized statement suiting with hemlines of all proportions take flight. Menswear gets a sporty twist, with pinnies and a suede varsity jacket paying homage to Browne's birth year with the number "65" giving it collegiate flair.

And one dog joined in the bird flock: The beloved Hector bag, in mini, baguette and regular sizes, trotted down the runway on multiple looks as well.

Supermodel Alek Wek closed the show, gold and silver sequins sparkling on a light gray jacket over a massive ball skirt, "carefully draped with 40 meters of heritage tweed," a headpiece as the plumage on top.

The soundtrack featured sounds of birds from Thomas Newman and Arielle Glaser, with "Chant des oiseaux," Pablo Casals' "Le Merle noir," Olivier Messiaen and Lene Lovich's "Bird Song"; atop of the sounds was the spoken poetry of Emily Dickinson, specifically "Hope is the thing with feathers." And to end the show, "The Sparrow" by The Ramblers. The devil – or the dove, perhaps – is in the details.

As Browne swooped out for his finale bow, he continued his tradition of bringing flowers (a white paper origami bouquet) to partner and the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Anna Wintour Costume Center head curator, Andrew Bolton, presenting them to Bolton from behind his back like a sartorial magician – which, especially after Tuesday's show, he's more than proved that he is.

Servers in the standard gray, four-bar striped Thom Browne uniform passed around champagne on gilded trays in celebration of the show, and the celebrities mingled and snapped photos with attendees and each other before the man of the hour arrived from backstage. Browne, who serves as the chair of the Council of Fashion Designers America, which oversees the New York Fashion Week calendar, posed for pictures in front of the bird backdrop with his guests. Let Browne's close-out show be an example in spreading your wings for all.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Thom Browne closes NYFW with whimsical show: See A-list attendees