Rabih Kayrouz debuts his designs at the SF Ballet Auxiliary Fashion Show.

HAUTE FASHION

SF Ballet Auxiliary Fashion Show Rabih Kayrouz F-W 21-22 couture 2 SF Ballet Auxiliary Fashion Show Rabih Kayrouz F-W 21-22 couture

“I don’t do static clothes. When I design clothes, I think: we have to live in it, we have to move in it”

— RABIH KAYROUZ

HAUTE FASHION

SAN FRANCISCO BALLET KEEPS US ON OUR TOES

Fashion Show Début By Designer Rabih Kayrouz

BY LAURIE JO MILLER FARR

INNOVATIVE AS EVER, ONE OF THE WORLD’S leading ballet companies and the first professional ballet company in the United States, proudly celebrates its trailblazing role in dance. Now in its 89th season, there’s so much going on at the San Francisco Ballet, we’re kept on our toes to not miss a beat.

The San Francisco Ballet Auxiliary Fashion Show makes its long-awaited return on Wednesday, March 30, 2022 featuring celebrated Haute Couture designer Rabih Kayrouz in his San Francisco premiere. The French-Lebanese designer is one of only 16 members of the Chambre Syndicale de la Haute Couture—the Parisian protected class of Haute Couture—and also a balletomane, frequently collaborating with Paris Opera Ballet. In San Francisco, the event chaired by Rhonda Mahendroo takes place at Saint Joseph’s Arts Society, a stunning venue for the designer who is known for architectural cuts and exacting construction.

In a 2020 interview with San Francisco Ballet, Kayrouz talked about connections between his fashion design aesthetic and ballet. “I love both contemporary and classical ballet, and to be able to contribute is an honor. And in the past when I’ve presented fashion shows, I’ve incorporated ballet dancers, most recently prima ballerina Marie Agnes Gillot. It’s something that I have experience doing and that I love because I work so much, when designing, on the movement. I don’t do static clothes. When I design clothes, I think: we have to live in it, we have to move in it,” he said.

On the question of inspiration, Kayrouz explained, “It’s really the movement that inspires me. People walking in the street, people dancing…all the gestures, all the body movements are inspiring for me. What we call ‘body language’ is important to me…It’s really the movement that leads me in all my designs. The movement, the attitude. Without talking about a theme or some specific inspiration for me, I’m generally inspired by the woman: I’m inspired by her movement. Through all my collections, I try to compose or to build the perfect wardrobe for this lady I have in my mind. She’s a strong lady, who likes to play, whose presentation, whose attitude, is simple. She’s not trying to do anything or prove anything. That’s the attitude I love.”

The event will benefit a wide range of San Francisco Ballet initiatives, including critical relief, new works, scholarships for San Francisco Ballet School students, and community outreach programs.

A seated lunch is followed by a runway show with tickets ranging from $500 to $5,000. Guests who purchase VIP tickets for $5,000 will join Rabih Kayrouz for an intimate dinner the night before the show and will enjoy premiere seating at the runway show. Grand Benefactor tickets at $1,000 include a cocktail reception with VIPs and the designer and dancers the night before the show. Patron tickets are $500.

For more information and to purchase tickets, please contact Meg Sullivan at msullivan@sfballet.org or 415-865-6625.