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It's the toughest 'Runway' ever

'Project Runway' hopefuls will strut their stuff during Fashion Week

BY ANNE BRATSKEIR | Special to Newsday

September 6, 2006

During Olympus Fashion Week, the eight-day extravaganza beginning Friday in Bryant Park, some 80 angst-ridden, stressed-out designers will hold their collective breath as they present their spring '07 collections. Will they be hailed or slaughtered by the 1,000 or so assembled media pundits? Will some 2,000 powerful buyers in attendance allocate precious dollars to get their lines into stores? Will their clothes magically glide down what may be the most prestigious runways in the world? Or will they deconstruct before the eyes of the planet's meanest audience?

Will they be loved or hated?

More precisely, will they be in or out?

Real life for 'Runway'

If all this sounds vaguely familiar, you're probably a fan of "Project Runway," Bravo's oh-so-fashionable reality show. And in a dead-on case of art (that is, if you consider the show art) imitating life, the last four aspiring designers standing from the current "Runway" season will, the morning of Sept. 15, strut their stuff in front of the same tough fashion crowd, with the same pressures and potential benefits as the big, established designers.

An invitation to the show is a very hot ticket. And despite the other big rewards awaiting the winner - a 2007 Saturn SKY roadster, a spread in Elle magazine, a mentorship with the clothing company I.N.C. and $100,000 seed money to start a line - the brass ring, and virtually everybody acknowledges it, is showing at New York Fashion Week.

"That is the prize," says contestant Laura Bennett, 43, an architect who, at press time, was still very much in the running. "One hundred thousand dollars is a great amount of money, but I'm not sure you can rent a space for a business with it for a year in New York. And what do you do with a Saturn convertible in the city? No, definitely New York Fashion Week and everything that goes with it is the prize."

But getting back to who is really "in," well, Heidi Klum is most certainly in. The 33-year-old supermodel, who can wear a set of Victoria's Secret angel wings like nobody's business, is the host, executive producer and co-creator of "Project Runway." After three seasons, the curvaceous German-born beauty (now pregnant with her third child, her second with rock-star husband Seal) seems at ease in her role as the show's narrative glue and ax-man. She delivers her kill line - "You are out" - in deadpan staccato, followed by a clipped "auf Wiedersehen" and Euro double air-kisses. "I try to be very German and dry about it, because at the end of the day they have to go," Klum says matter-of-factly.

As for the Fashion Week finale, Klum says, "This is the ultimate goal. Every big American designer - Donna Karan, Calvin Klein, Michael Kors - they show at Fashion Week. It's a huge accomplishment to show here."

Also, huge: the show's growth spurt this season. According to Bravo, the July 12 season premiere was up 161 percent over the season-two premiere, and viewership numbers regularly beat broadcast rivals. "When it's done well, reality TV can be some of the best stuff on television, and 'Project Runway' is an example," says Robert Thompson, professor of popular culture at Syracuse University, who, by the way, has not missed an episode.

Much of the allure, says Tim Gunn, the show's unflappable father-hen figure, is that "Runway" reveals fashion's rather unglamorous side. "Here you see we're all really down in the trenches," he says. "You see the blood, sweat and tears, and it demystifies fashion."

The chair of fashion design for Parsons the New School for Design, Gunn's role as mentor and guru has turned him into a bit of a celebrity (perhaps you caught him doing commentary on the Emmy red carpet). "The first season, someone may have recognized me once a week. Then maybe once a day, and now when I go to the airport, a dozen people want to take my picture from their cell phones." And he chortles about how his motivational catchphrases - "Carry on" and "Make it work" - are often yelled out to him from moving cars.

Nina Garcia, Elle magazine's fashion director who is one of the regular judges on "Runway," says that part of the show's fascination is "that they are creating something every episode, and people are more obsessed with fashion than ever." Garcia charmingly lacks any semblance of a poker face: hers registers amusement, adulation and disgust in equal doses. In fact, the show's audience recently voted her the toughest judge.

Another tough judge

That title really should go to her colleague Michael Kors, in Garcia's opinion. Kors, known for his breezy American sportswear, loves and loathes the designers' weekly creations with equal enthusiasm, tossing off one-line zingers with ease: "To me it's Comme des Garçons meets the Amish Country," he said of one unfortunate outfit. But, he says, "if they think I am tough, they better get ready for the fashion critics. Compared to them I am a pussycat." He said he believes that the show's popularity stems from "people, and not just fashionistas, who enjoy watching the creative process, from 12-year-old girls to 40-year-old investment bankers. It is a compelling weekly story, and even I get wound up in it."

As for the ultimate prize, the Fashion Week gig, Kors, who will present his own collection on the runway next Wednesday morning, both empathizes and recognizes its value. "I still do not sleep the night before my show, and I've had many shows, too many. The exposure that this show gives these designers is immeasurable and amazing. I am not sure they realize it in the moment, but to stage a runway collection in Bryant Park that is fully financed and covered nationally ... that is insane!"

Faces from the season

Want to know which four contestants make it to the Bryant Park runway? So do we - but Bravo isn't about to tell. At the moment, the final four are sequestered in their hometowns, putting the final touches on their collections. (Only the top three will actually be shown on the show's two-part finale, airing Oct. 11 and 18 at 10 p.m.) Here are two who are definitely out and two we think will make it to the end:

THEY'RE OUT

Alison Kelly, 25, Brooklyn