Jaunted

Last night, the Yotel officially opened with raucous party that called some of the best, brightest and plain craziest performers in to occupy 100 rooms and give shows—whether musical, burlesque, comedic or crafty—of under two minutes. There were some big names, like Kristen Schaal (The Daily Show and Flight of the Conchords), Mark Malkoff (the comedian who lived on AirTran planes for 30 days), Jo Boobs (author of The Burlesque Handbook), Newmindspace (the group charged with organizing the annual World Pillow Fight Day), and a host of others. Hello—there were 100 performances.

...and then there was a lightsaber battle...

If we can be completely subjective for a moment, we have to admit that this whole shindig was unlike any other NYC party we've ever been to. It was utterly and completely creative and equal parts cool kids and conservative suits. It was interactive and wham-bang FUN. If you wanted to (and oh, we wanted to) get roped into the experiences, it was even better. Even the Real Housewives-type women who somehow show up at every city party just to drink all the white wine, lost inhibitions and were down with many of the kinkier scenes.

We can't really reveal everything that happened at the no-tell Yotel last night, but we can say that we chatted a bit with Dave Barkoe of Cunning, the agency that conceived this whole evening for Yotel. "The original idea was all 669 rooms—669 performances," he revealed, "all to show off what you can do in a Yotel room!"

If you're curious to see what these rooms look like without cellos on the bed and "after prom" dancers in the showers, then check out our hotel tour from just before opening.

Now we wait. Currently the lowest category of rooms, the Premium Cabins, are open for business. Following them will be hot tub patio-equipped First Class cabins and two massive VIP suites complete with round beds. Did someone say Shark Week viewing party in a hot tub suite? We think so!

[Photos: Cynthia Drescher for Jaunted]