The naked truth about Bench’s The Naked Truth
The hottest same-sex love team, America’s Next Top Model, UAAP’s hottest baller, Cirque du Soleil’s lighting designer, 15 models cast from New York to Slovenia, more than a hundred celebrities and models — all these elements will come together this Sept. 19 at the SM Moa Arena for Ben Chan’s biggest biannual denim and underwear show. This is “The Naked Truth.”
Social media has been abuzz with black and white images of the scene’s hottest celebrities prancing and pouting in their naked best, the flesh of their skin made more stark by the brightness of Mark Nicdao’s lighting directed towards them. In each frame they seduce the viewer with “come hither” looks. It is as dazzling as it is dizzying, the number of familiar faces and sizzling bodies in one Instagram video post. At the lower right end of the frame is an emblazoned red “B,” for Bench — the benchmark of Filipino global fashion, retail and lifestyle that stands for anything and everything current and hot.
At the mega brand’s press preview held at the Bench tower’s basement, birthday boy Ben Chan presented the newest boys and the blonde girl of #TheNakedTruth. The scene’s hottest love team TomDen — Dennis Trillo and Tom Rodriguez — UAAP giant Arnold Van Opstal, soap stars Martin del Rosario and Dominic Roque, crooner Markki Stroem, and America’s Next Top Model and social media superstar Allison Harvard paraded along with a hand-picked selection of more than a hundred-strong models who will shimmy in their skimmies this September. But wait, there’s more.
Bench never does anything small-scale, so even this, their “preview,” was a full-on production. Moët & Chandon baby bottles were served as “soft” drinks to the hardcore show that was about to take place. The music rose to a crescendo and the exhibitionism commenced. One after the other, with bodies that will make you not want to eat for a month, they sashayed down the ramp, parading their toned bodies made even more salivatingly sumptuous by the underwear they used as second skin.
Purity amidst all the elements
“The Naked Truth” is set to be the event of the year, bar none. Every two years it sets the bar higher and higher as it gets bigger and bigger. One year it was a giant disco, another year it was a fantasy playground, and yet another year it was a Dubai designer showcase, complete with global acts, dancers that you’ve seen in the music videos of pop music superstars — you get the flashy point.
What makes this year’s shebang different, you might want to ask? “We are bringing in the lighting designer of Cirque Du Soleil, we casted 15 models from New York to Tokyo to Zurich to Slovenia, and each day we are making sure that the lineup is our best ever yet,” says the visionary Ben Chan, in a very shy tone. Ben has never been one to boast, rest on his laurels or talk about his work. He lets the work speak for itself. The next thing you know, it’s pop culture history.
But the key to knowing what goes behind Bench is reading between the lines. “I have been Skyping nonstop with people from all over the world to make sure everything goes well.” The show happening right in front of us had different elements and a hodgepodge of words flashing on the screen. The word “Purity” stood out.
I guess after all these years, after achieving mastery, one does seek a higher sense of being. A form of purity. I ask Ben what “The Naked Truth,” in one word, will be about.
Ben Chan is at a loss for that one word, yet in his eyes I see a lot of imagery and stunning visuals. In the mind of the genius, 101 things are happening all at the same time.
“That’s kinda hard,” he looks at me and offers a nervous laugh.
And that’s the naked truth.
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