On any other day of the year, the Upper East Side would have been completely asleep for two hours. But shortly before midnight on the first Monday in May, there's still a bit of electricity as celebrities switch gears from the refined elegance of the Met Gala to the unabashed debauchery of the latter..
What's interesting is that while the main event is a heavily guarded affair reserved only for celebrities, dignitaries and other posh people, the after-parties are (slightly) more egalitarian: those in the know can get a spot in “the list”. That means you'll find vastly different vibes and even more diverse crowds, which in turn means judging the Met-Gala after-party scene by attending just one would be like trying to determine the best new shows of the year. 'year just watching Paramount+. So the only course of action, being the responsible journalist that I am, was to stay up all night zigzagging across town to four events.
Leaving the Mark Hotel, the next event is the Ssense and Jean Paul Gaultier party, held at Sapphire, a strip club just under the bridge in Queens. There are already crowds of people waiting to get in, but the doors are “closed” while organizers assess the situation. There are five people outside, four of whom appear to be fashionistas in unique, all-black clothing. The fifth is an old man with straight hair and a gold chain who tells anyone who steps lightly towards the velvet ropes that they won't let anyone in until 90 people leave. The other people working look at each other. It's not hard to assume that this guy works for the strip club and not Ssense, so I ask one of the others if I can get in and give them my name, and pretty soon, I'm in.
To the straight-haired man's credit, it's pretty packed inside. Strobe and laser lights shine through the steam wafting into the air, and the bar is wet with spilled vodka sodas. Rachel Sennott and Ella Emhoff cruise through the crowd, which is definitely younger, downtown and in fashion. I meet Marika Thunder, a friend of a friend and a wonderful artist. She says she's excited JT can perform later, but I can't stay that long.
Next stop is WSA, downtown on Water Street, where Emily Ratajkowski hosts AprèsMet. WSA usually looks like an office out of an 80s movie (lots of chrome and sloping staircases), but after tonight's installation, it has a misty, dreamlike atmosphere with dripping candles, flowing white tablecloths and a carefully crafted tower of hundreds of champagne glasses. It's also a brilliant crowd. After a drink, I flop into a large daybed surrounded by fluff made to look like a cloud. Jodie Turner-Smith, Charlie XCX and Jaden Smith walk by.
The WSA bathrooms are on a lower floor, where there are large disco balls strewn across the floor. As I head back to the elevators, a couple comes out and accidentally throws one of the empty disco balls in my direction. I catch it with cat reflexes, realizing that if I had dodged it, I would have shattered a glass door behind me. We all laugh and exchange empty promises to see each other at the next party. I use my agility with the disco ball to say I'm up for the challenge.
Half a mile down the road is Casa Cipriani, where Richie Akiva is pulling out all the stops for the tenth anniversary of “The After.” There's a horde of people trying to get in here too. Normally, the publicists who invite guests in the first place handle the outside list, but at Casa Cipriani, the four men working the door are definitely not doing PR. (If I had to guess, I'd guess they break their legs professionally.) “I'm actually working on this event,” a man in a lime green suit tells a Bay Ridge security worker. “I dress [name redacted], so this is really like a job for me. We've been here for the last two years, and you're clearly still letting people in.” The older man looks at him flatly and just says, “I just have one question for you: why are you telling me this? I'm not the goalkeeper. I won't help you.”
Before long, a publicist pulls me off the line and I leave these wayward souls behind. Walking up the floral steps, the first person I lock eyes with is Serena Williams. We pass each other and smile as I resist the urge to tell him how obsessed I am with his life and career. Above, Gabrielle Union and Dwayne Wade hang out, while Teyana Taylor stands near the bar. Winnie Harlow is dancing up a storm in the center of the floor. Near the step and repeat, a designer I know says he just saw Leonardo DiCaprio and Lil Nas X. On the fringes of the main room, the regular New York nightlife crowd is here for the show, too. Marilu Cancel, the woman who runs the door at The Nines and Acme, is having a drink with Teddy Quinlivan and Dante Cardenas, who host the monthly Inferno party at Jean's in Lafayette. They're all eating Neat Burger fries and vegan ice cream. On each table, there is a candle that says “Carby Musk for 'The After',” which guests secretly tuck into their coat pockets or large wallets. People go out to smoke on the balcony, on which I see the same faces waiting to enter as before.
It's getting late and it's time to start heading north. I walk a few blocks east until I catch a cab, but I don't make it north of Houston before friends text me that Usher's “Secret Garden” party at the Edition Hotel is going wild. Walking up, I see comedian and writer Amber Ruffin, who I interned for in college. Then, in the lobby, I see Zach Weiss, a reporter-recounter who has just left to go to Casa Cipriani. “It's fun up there,” he says. “Definitely worth it.”
The party is divided into a few areas: there is a full dance floor with a DJ hard at work on the turntables, and a larger room, well lit and airy, where people can hear and see each other. Usher is at the center of the latter, holding the track. To his left is a large bodyguard holding a basket of chips that Usher would reach out and grab. To Usher's right is a man doing card tricks to Usher's surprise. He's not a magician, yes, but just a guy who left the house in a tuxedo thinking, “Of course I carry the cards. Usher will love this.” With that trick, it's time to call it a night. The sun is about to rise and I have a morning draft.
