As she walked down the runway wearing a pointy shoulder coat and a metal breastplate, the model-turned-actress mouthed the words to a cover of Prince’s “When Doves Cry.” The cover was, fittingly considering the metal and romance, Quindon Tarver’s choral rendition of Baz Luhrmann’s Romeo + Juliet.
Delevingne’s rumored girlfriend Ashley Benson sat front row filming the supermodel as she opened the Paris show. The model’s return to the runway came just one day after she tweeted about why she didn’t report her sexual assault. “Because I felt ashamed of what happened and didn’t want to publicly ruin someone’s life, even though they privately ruined mine #WhyIDidntReport,” Delevingne tweeted.
Because I felt ashamed of what happened and didn’t want to publicly ruin someone’s life, even though they privately ruined mine #WhyIDidntReport
— Cara Delevingne (@Caradelevingne) September 27, 2018
On Friday, the mood turned more celebratory, with the Paper Towns actress tweeting praise for Balmain and the label’s creative director Olivier Rousteing. She wrote: “Thank you for having me @balmain so many exciting things to come, I cannot wait to tell you guys. I love you @olivier_rousteing your heart, support and infinite talent is so incredible to be around and I feel so grateful even when you don’t let me kiss you.”
Balmain’s show also exemplified how Rousteing is using virtual reality to democratize fashion. On the show’s invite, he wrote, “In a groundbreaking partnership with [Google] Oculus, I’m democratizing the runway to allow a new audience from around the world join me for an exclusive, up close 360 view of the collection. This year, I’m excited to announce the same number of people will be watching my show in virtual reality as in real life.”
The atmosphere at Friday’s show was infectious, with a killer soundtrack featuring Whitney Houston’s “I Wanna Dance With Somebody” and Queen’s “We Will Rock You.” Delevingne took a finale bow with Rousteing, as she once again mouthed the lyrics. As always, Balmain blended strength and feminine power with celebration.