To witness the Chanel 2017 Cruise, house creative director Karl Lagerfeld treated 600 VIP clients, fashion press and luxury store buyers to a luxurious weekend in Cuba. For the fashion show, guests arrived in ’50s Cadillacs and descended upon El Paseo del Prado, one of the main streets in Havana.

 

A hundred models walked the kilometric al fresco runway, with Cuban jazz artists playing sultry Latin love songs.

 

Chanel is the first major fashion house to hold a runway show in Cuba, highlighting both warming relations with the US and new inequalities on the island. Former Cold War foes, the US and Cuba formally agreed to restore diplomatic relations last July.

 

Turquoise and pink

 

Cuban motifs in the new Cruise line were seen in a fabric depicting turquoise and pink vintage cars, used for leisurewear such as jackets, a bathrobe and skirts. There were T-shirts and stonewashed denims, and pieces that can be mixed and matched with wild abandon.

 

Sequined black berets also recalled the nonglitzy one sported by late revolutionary Ernesto “Che” Guevara, a national hero in Cuba. Of course, the models were smoking Cuban cigars.

 

The shoes were espadrilles, spectator slip-ons, two-tone brogues. Multitonal, ruffle dresses and signature Chanel bouclé jackets were rendered in vibrant hues of lime green and bright yellow, with “Viva Coco Libre” T-shirts, making up a collection that was as colorful as the Cuban buildings in the backdrop.

 

On Instagram, a video clip made my jaw drop. The after-party was a riot. Lagerfeld, the elusive fashion unicorn, is much more human than we thought.

 

To celebrate the Cuban fashion invasion, the designer decided to celebrate by hitting the dance floor with some of his favorite muses, including French actress and singer Cécile Crochon (aka HollySiz) and Vanessa Paradis.

 

And ladies and gents, the Kaiser can salsa. Que tal?

 

Based on reports from Chanel.com