Simone Rocha paid tribute to her Irish roots at London Fashion Week SS20.
Rocha chose the recently restored Victorian theatre, which reopened last year after an 80-year closure, to put on a spectacle which read like a love letter to home.
Accordingly, Rocha recruited an all-star cast to model her brand of fantastical feminine fashion with the line-up featuring a host of actors from the designer’s native Ireland.
Her line up included Irish actors Jessie Buckley, Charlene McKenna, Olwen Fouéré, Simone Kirby and Valene Kane, who for the finale, paraded along to the eerie, ritualistic sounds of traditional Irish drumming.
Also topping the bill was English actor Lesley Manville OBE, rising star Tia Bannon and 40-year-old supermodel Karen Elson in an inclusive showcase which sought to celebrate beauty of all ages from young women to those in their mid-60s.
Rocha's attempts at upping the ante when it came to ethereal brightness was guided by the Celtic tradition of Wren Day, meaning that embroidered pieces of straw wove throughout the collection's layers upon layers of ruffles, lace, frills, and puff sleeves.
There was no mistaking the fact that Rocha used pearls, too; one was even large enough for Karen Elson to carry it as a purse.
An abundance of accessories was also indicative of a confident collection from a designer intent on building her brand up from the smallest details through to the statement-making investment pieces.
“The level of work and detail that she went into this time was extraordinary,” Rocha's mother told the Irish Times after the show.
“It was one of her best collections – and there was so much variety this season,” she said.
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