FRONT ROW AT THE THEATRE

Alessandro Michele pays tribute to Italian theatre legends Leo de Berardinis and Perla Peragallo in Gucci’s SS19 collection

ALESSANDRO MICHELE CAN do no wrong. Seemingly. The Italian creative director, who’s steered Gucci’s design direction since 2015, has found inspiration in disparate places ‒ Victorian glamour, ’70s rock and roll, even the New York Yankees ‒ for the house’s collections. And yet, these ostensibly divergent references have been both creative and commercial successes.

Take a closer look and you’ll realise there is a common thread running through these collections ‒ the past. “I’m not interested in the future. It doesn’t exist yet. But

I’m really interested in the past and the contemporary,” Michele once famously opined in an interview.

It’s a welcome respite from the trend chasing that is prevalent among luxury brands. It’s also arguably one of the drivers of Gucci’s success. Consumers love the ability to mix and match clothing items from Gucci’s different seasonal collections while still looking sartorially put together.

The man with the Midas touch returns to his favourite stomping ground for Gucci’s spring/summer 2019 collection. This time, he’s tapped on theatre, specifically Italian stage actors Leo de Berardinis and Perla Peragallo. Active in the ’70s and ’80s, the duo had collaborated on numerous plays and were vocal advocates of the avant-garde theatre movement.

Show Stoppers

Naturally, Michele’s show was staged in a historically accurate manner. He took over Le Palace theatre in Montmartre, Paris, and for one night, the crowd was transported into the past in a place that had hosted luminaries such as Yves Saint Laurent,

Karl Lagerfeld and fashion illustrator

Antonio Lopez.

Once again, gender lines were blurred, as male models walked down the runway in both fluid floral dresses and stiff suits.

The focus was not so much on who could wear the clothes but what these clothes represented: contradictions, sexual energy, and the belief that you could be whoever you want without fear of being judged for it.

The spring/summer 2019 show might just be Michele’s most sexually charged to date, with men wearing low-cut leotards and black leather, along with bejewelled jockstraps over high-waisted trousers.

Above all the flamboyance on stage, Gucci’s subtle vintage double G logo shone out on backpacks and handsome suit jackets. Coincidentally, they were also some of our favourite pieces from the show.

The backpack with its two circular side attachments was actually inspired by hiking gear, although we can totally see ourselves carrying it to the office. There was also a high-top sneaker that’s made its way onto our shopping list.

There were patterns on top of patterns, intricate embroidery work and vibrant colours mixed in with flowing fringes and feathers. It was live-out-loud Michele, and it worked beautifully. Gucci, once again, has knocked it right out of the park. AM