La-La-Land is Now Demna-Land: Balenciaga’s Ur-Hollywood Runway Vision Takes Over LA

Hancock Park might by no means be the identical. On a vibrant Saturday afternoon Balenciaga staged their pre-fall 2024 present on a closed-down avenue within the placid, leafy neighborhood that’s sometimes the stomping floor for well-heeled Hollywood households. At present nonetheless, the large, oak-lined streets noticed totally different form of heels—those that appear like socks— traipsing down the asphalt, giving new which means to avenue model.

For safety, the precise present venue had been a secret to attendees, who had been ferried from drop-off places a number of blocks away. Given the snaking line of blacked-out SUVs, ear-pieced guards, and goth-glam outfits to match, the group seemed much less like they had been gathered for a vacation spot trend present than the inauguration of a Transylvanian head of state. Safety was lighter, nonetheless, for at the least one present goer, a Hancock Park resident, who solely needed to stroll out her entrance door to sit on the present.

Kim Kardashian, seated with sister Kendall, carried a leather-based tote crafted to appear like a brown paper Erewhon purchasing bag—an ur-L.A. imaginative and prescient—filled with flowers, which she gave to Demna after the present. Natasha Lyonne wore an early-aughts-esque bubble gum pink velour hoodie, whereas newly-announced Balenciaga model ambassador Nicole Kidman parted the ocean of onlookers in a velvet costume with a sculpted bodice. Nicola Peltz and Brooklyn Beckham, Vittoria Ceretti (extra accustomed to strolling than sitting), and Lil Wayne might all be seen lining the entrance row. The visitor of honor, nonetheless, was the Hollywood signal, completely positioned within the distance between the palms of South Windsor Boulevard.

The present started with a sonic jolt of techno laced with wellness-themed radio commercials, promising nonsensical energy and enlightenment. (One of many lyrics, which had been all written by Demna and his husband/music director BFRND, intoned: “Welcome hungry souls to the realm of hungry stomachs.”) The gathering provided a sardonic commentary on Angeleno model: stilettoed, outsized Ugg boots; thongs arching out of low-cut tracksuits; the aforementioned leather-based Erewhon baggage, in addition to espresso thermoses and reusable metallic water bottles. Cardi B, clad in a cobalt furry coat, performed the position of instantly-viral celeb mannequin; whereas Brigitte Nielsen, the previous Helmut Newton mannequin, was forged because the IYKYK trend icon. When Balenciaga CEO Cedric Charbit stood up after the finale, indicating that everybody else might too, a number of friends shouted “Encore!”

Heading west on Melrose after the present, it was arduous to not discover all the identical equipment and sartorial particulars that Balenciaga had simply exaggerated to vital, and even comedic, impact. Even a tried-and-true European like Demna is aware of one cardinal rule about Los Angeles: there’s nothing Hollywood loves extra than a present about Hollywood.