Alain Paul’s Spring/Summer ’26 ‘The Audition’ Transforms Dressing into Ballet-Inspired Performance

Alain Paul’s Spring/Summer ’26 show, The Audition, turned dressing into a performance. Inspired by his past in contemporary ballet and recent fashion accolades, Paul explored the fleeting, vulnerable moments of auditioning, where every gesture and every outfit became a character in motion.

The collection played with layers, movement, and transformation, dresses, skirts, and tops twisted and folded like bodies in rehearsal, while corseted bustiers, draped jackets, and pants hanging from waistbands echoed the gestures of dressing and undressing. Repetition and variation highlighted individuality, reminiscent of a corps de ballet performing the same choreography with unique expression.

Paul’s fascination with repurposed garments continued. Leather jackets were reconstructed from old pieces, tights became sculptural dresses, and coats were hand-assembled from fragments of historical stage costumes. Prints of falling poppies and carnations, layered on translucent fabrics, nodded to the flowers dancers received at the end of a performance, adding a poetic touch of vulnerability.

Even the shoes took cues from dancers’ movement, spinning slippers transformed into sling-backs, flats, and mules, balancing function and elegance. In a lively, gymlike setting, the show captured the in-between space of rehearsal and stage, blending fashion, performance, and emotion into a kinetic, unforgettable narrative.