Real estate brokers have a reputation as bloodsuckers, but the Nest Seekers International Halloween party took that maxim to a whole new level.
The first of its kind, the spooky bash brought together hundreds of Nest Seekers brokers and friends of the firm to the Finale nightclub at 199 Bowery. CEO Eddie Shapiro, dressed as a masquerade-goer in a ruffled shirt and rhinestone-studded loafers, explained that he threw the event to avoid competing with the inevitable crush of holiday parties later in the year.
And this was no staid company affair. Performers in Black Swan costumes pirouetted on the dance floor, a Spandex-ed contortionist twisted and flipped on a raised platform, booze flowed from the open bar, and barely recognizable guests showed off some pretty impressive costumes.
On hand were a bevy of flappers, gangsters and jazz fiends paying homage to “The Great Gatsby,” while a boa-clad Muammar Gaddafi lounged on a banquette. Carol Friedman, one of the first brokers to join Nest Seekers, boasted that her bee costume came from the kids’ section. Others dressed as a bride, a cop, Peter Pan, Dorothy, Catwoman, Madonna, a pimp, a king, and more.
But one guest was conspicuously absent. “Million Dollar Listing New York” star and Nest Seekers top producer Ryan Serhant didn’t show. He said he was tied up til 4:30 a.m. filming his part in Noah Baumbach’s next movie, “While We’re Young.” — Leigh Kamping-Carder