Experiential, but make it fashion: Inside the return of New York Fashion Week

This year's New York Fashion Week coincided with the US Open, the Met Gala (check out the lewks) and the VMAs. There are general back-to-school vibes zinging through the late summer air, making it feel like yet another big milestone in the city's great reawakening-ish.   The week of shows, spectacles, parties, and yes, brand activations were pared down compared to the festivities of years past. In fact, 27 percent of shows were fully virtual, and many designers required proof of vaccination and/or masks to attend their shows, according to IMG. Yet, there was still a ton of XP to be consumed both IRL and online.  Here are a handful of the XP highlights from New York Fashion Week 2021, Sept. 8-12: Guests at designer Tara Subkoff's Imitation of Christ show were drawn out of their seats for a three-part performance at St. Mark’s Church in-the-Bowery. Seventy-five  ballerinas performed to choreography by the duo Dead Serious NYC. All were sporting the brand's apparel, some pieces emblazoned with socially-minded phrases like "the more you consume the less you have." The show also acted as a backdrop to the first-ever live performance by 19-year-old singer Blessing. Subkoff described the show as “another peaceful...