Casey Cadwallader was feeling theatrical about fall. Fresh off securing what will surely be the definitive viral red carpet hit of the year: Zendaya goes couture robot in the “Maschinenmensch,” the fully articulated robot armor suit from Mugler’s Fall/Winter 1995 couture collection, for the London premiere from Dune 2 – he decided to embrace the overt showmanship that once earned Thierry Mugler the nickname “creator of chocolate.” “I go to other people’s shows, and they’re very quiet. And when the show ends, I think… I would die if it were that quiet!” Cadwallader said in a preview, showing the goosebumps to prove it. “I want people to smile, laugh, get excited. There are brands that dress you for the everyday, and I love those brands too, but I am at the helm of Mugler, and Mugler is different.”
Mugler is certainly different, but so are the times. In an age of corporate, conglomerate-dominated fashion, what would it take for Cadwallader to stage, say, a groundbreaking extravaganza to rival that of the 1995 20th anniversary show that spawned Maschinenmensch? That show, held at the Cirque d’Hiver in Paris, was an hour-long spectacle starring Jerry Hall, Naomi Campbell and Kate Moss, culminating in a performance by James Brown. The robot suit alone took six months to make by hand.
Still, Cadwallader was determined to cause a stir. “What a gift!” he said of the process of coordinating a three-act fashion show he created, complete with multiple curtain drops, Precious Lee and Paloma Elsesser silhouetted against a spotlight, Kristen McMenamy, Eva Herzigova and Farida Khelfa stalking the runway, and a whole bunch of dry ice. “You can have fun, you can add drama and theater to what you do. It is a bigger challenge, but it does ensure that you sharpen your idea.”
He’d been looking through the vampiric collections of the 1980s in the archives, eschewing daywear (no denim, no Lycra) for blood-curdling, blood-curdling evening looks. “In the beginning I had a sporty flair in my clothes for years [my time at] Mugler,” he said. “Now I really want a more glamorous, dressed-up, decadent, textural creation.” The first looks explored the idea of undressing, with sheer corsets, molded leather harnesses, leather belts and liquid stretch velvet that separates from the body. Then came experiments with print, a collaboration with contemporary Canadian artist Ambera Wellmann, whose sexually charged, surreal paintings were adapted to adorn second-skin mini dresses and trousers.
