It was raining nearly naked men at Glamorama.

So where did that leave Ne-Yo? A dapper, gentlemanly R&B star just can't follow a bunch of buff guys with six-pack abs wearing only underwear standing under an artificial rain shower. Not at a fashion show, bachelorette party or gay-bar revue.

So Ne-Yo, who was top billed at Macy's annual Glamorama on Friday at the Orpheum Theatre, did not close the program, as originally planned. Instead, the boys in their Papi briefs posing under a "water wall" (to, of course, the timeless disco hit "It's Raining Men," by the Weather Girls) finished -- and stole -- the show.

Billed as "fashion + music come together," this Glamorama had high-tech drizzle but not enough music-meets-fashion sizzle. Super-suave, suit-wearing Ne-Yo, a deft dancer from the Michael Jackson school of slippery soul stepping, was captivating to watch (despite his distracting four female dancers). But his Grammy-winning pop-soul "Closer" and "Miss Independent" almost seemed too cool for the baby boomers in the room. So much for Macy's trying to up its contempo-currency after last year's unmoldy oldies Cyndi Lauper and MC Hammer.

Including perky wanna-be Kristinia DeBarge, 19, seemed as pointless as featuring the ageless Miss Piggy, who was too small to be seen and too brief in time onstage to have star-turn impact. This hourlong Glam was not as crisp, smart or exciting as in the past.

The best casting was pairing the New Standards, a hip Twin Cities lounge trio turning Britney Spears' "Toxic" inside out, with models strutting by in Sportmax outfits.

Some recorded music smartly complemented the runway action as well: A.H. Rahman's all-purpose ethnic "Liquid Dance" with the Alberta Ferretti; Fisherspooner's slow, spacey "Danse en France" with the Sonia Rykiel; and Marilyn Manson's dark, metallic treatment of Eurythmics' "Sweet Dreams" fitting Jean Paul Gaultier's models with their veiled faces like a studded black glove. Indeed, that's where fashion and music did come together.

Jon Bream • 612-673-1719 Sara Glassman • 612-673-7177