What to KnowMetropolitan Fashion Week Opening NightOriginal Farmers MarketThursday, Oct. 16 to 8 p.m.Capes are the 2026 themeFreeOrganizers are spotlighting Venezuela Earthquake Relief Programs; you can donate at this page
Unless they’re created out of the most gossamer, light, gauzy, barely-there material, you’re not going to encounter too many capes in Los Angeles.
Well, that isn’t wholly true: Here in Movie Town U.S.A., there are plenty of caped heroes soaring around various film lots in shiny super suits.
And cute coquettish capelets, the shorter and spunkier version of a cape, can absolutely be worn when daytime temperatures dip into the 60s around December and January.
Still, let us not be dissuaded from our cape love by the recent warm spells. Not when Metropolitan Fashion Week is celebrating its energetic Opening Night at the Original Farmers Market with a stylish salute to the free-flowing shawl-like piece.
You’ll want to strut, much like you might strut along a red carpet or catwalk, in the direction of the landmark’s clock tower for the evening event, which begins at 6 o’clock on the first day of October.
While a variety of cape styles will be saluted, the pieces that spanned the centuries, the creations you’ll behold will be original.
“This year’s Opening Night theme, CAPE EXTRAVAGANZA, challenges fashion designers from around the world to create one breathtaking Fashion Masterpiece inspired by the grandeur and elegance of legendary capes throughout history, from Victorian sophistication and Renaissance royalty to Hollywood glamour and avant-garde modern couture,” trumpets a message from the Original Farmers Market.
If you’ve followed this fashion-forward fall celebration for a few years, then you know that it always boasts a distinct and memorable theme. “Fashion & Heroes” honored first responders in 2025, while music from films and TV informed the creative runway looks in 2024.
Global architecture and Greek mythology have also served as snazzy jumping-off points for the elegant outdoor affair, which sashays with flair and daring near the trolley tracks.
Could this be your winter of the cape, or at least the capelet?
Stop by the Original Farmers Market on Oct. 1 for inspiration, to give the designers the applause they deserve, and to support the evening’s beneficiary: Venezuela Earthquake Relief Programs.
