Hussein Chalayan Creates Theatre In London

Designer Hussein Chalayan has collaborated with London contemporary dance centre Saddler’s Wells to create a piece of theatre called “Gravity Fatigue.” The piece, which will mark Chalayan’s first foray into the world of theatre and dance, will debut at Saddler’s Wells on October 28.

Working with choreographer Damien Jalet on the production, Chalayan will work to explore “identity and displacement,” whilst collaborating with the London centre to “combine the visual creativity of his designs and concepts with contemporary dance.” The news comes after Another Magazine announced earlier last month that they were also working with Saddler’s Wells on a series of films that were to bring together the mediums of fashion and the moving image. Chalayan, among designers such as Prada, Gareth Pugh, Calvin Klein Collection, Iris Van Herpen, Alexander McQueen and Stephen Jones Millinery, are all set to take part in the series, named “Movement.”

Talking about his standalone project, Chalayan commented that: “Fashion for me is a very important part of culture, however, in many cases clothes can limit the expression of certain ideas. This production will allow me to build narratives around and with the body in a much broader context than ever seen before in my work.” Alistair Spalding, the acting artistic director and chief executive of Sadler’s Wells, also added to WWD that, “Both dance and fashion deal with the moving body and one’s sense of identity, and in “Gravity Fatigue” the two art forms don’t just enhance each other but are truly complementary in their delivery of the show’s concepts and of Chalayan’s distinctive aesthetic vision.”

Come October, visitors to London’s Saddler’s Wells will be able to enjoy what promises to be an exceptional fusion of fashion and theatre.