Beth Ditto storms Marc Jacobs’ Hollywood-themed runway

This season Marc Jacobs took us to Hollywood. Or at least a tongue-in-cheek counterfeit of it. Staged at the aptly chosen location of the Ziegfeld Theatre on West 54th Street, New York, the show could have easily been mistaken for a film premier – which, given the show’s hashtag (#MarcJacobsPremier), it kind of was.

Before entering the theatre, Jacobs’ cast of models were subjected to the red carpet treatment. They walked like movie stars, down a catwalk lined with fans, before posing for the cameras in front of a wall emblazoned with the designer’s logo. The audience watched their arrival from inside the theatre, where it was being projected onto a big screen.

Then this cast – which included Gossip singer Beth Ditto, 90s supermodel Karen Elson, Dazed cover stars Molly Bair and Lineisy Montero, and the star of Jacobs’ new fragrance campaign Adriana Lima – entered the theatre wearing a collection which was every bit as theatrical as the location.

With cinched waists and power shoulders, bell sleeves and full cut trousers, pussy bows and neck chokers, glitter and lamé, the collection had both the glamour of Hollywood in the 50s and of Working Girl’s New York in the 80s. A platinum blonde Ditto wore a white ball gown and a pair of silver platform heels, carrying an enormous feather boa in tow.

However the cinema theme went beyond the location: there was popcorn (served in Marc Jacobs boxes, naturally), women handing out sweets and – as the show finished – a remake of MGM’s logo projected onto the big screen, featuring Neville the bull terrier instead of Leo the lion. 

The show was a theatrical tour de force: triumphant and celebratory. This was Jacobs – fashion’s great showman – at his most exuberant.