Today's Chanel couture show, titled "
The Old World and the New World," was
all about contrasting the grimy, dilapidated present with a gleaming
future full of impeccable models. Guests sat in creaky wooden chairs
that were painted to look dusty; the effect was so realistic that
publicists had to reassure guests like Rihanna and Kristen Stewart that
it was indeed safe to park their Chanel-clad butts on them. Meanwhile,
the floor of the Grand Palais was strewn with dirt and rubble, and the
windows were made to appear broken. Then, when the show began, curtains
parted to reveal a gleaming, Oz-type city on a raised stage.
