PARIS, Sept.29 (Reuters) – French fashion house Balmain celebrated 10 years in the tenure of creative director Olivier Rousteing with a runway show featuring a host of famous models including Naomi Campbell, former French first lady Carla Bruni, Milla Jovovich and Natalia Vodianova.

Models strutted across the stage of a crowded music hall on the Seine in deconstructed clothing slit to show patches of bare skin, draped in chains and layered with bold shoulder jackets or floor-sweeping trenches.

At the end of the show, the designer bowed to the jubilant crowd, surrounded by a dozen models dressed in whimsical dresses covered with sequins.

The label welcomed thousands of fans to the hall for a two-day festival that included performances by Jesse Jo Stark, Doja Cat and Franz Ferdinand.

Dozens of brands are hosting in-person fashion shows during Paris Fashion Week, which runs through October 5, as slowing COVID-19 infection rates and easing restrictions have allowed events to resume interrupted during the peak of the pandemic.

Spectators at the Balmain festival could purchase food and drink as well as branded goods, including sneakers priced at 850 euros ($ 986) and bags of hair cosmetics.

($ 1 = 0.86 euro)

Reporting by Mimosa Spencer; Editing by Richard Chang

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