“It was paradise birds on acid,” Haider Ackermann told us backstage after the peculiarly beautifully show. “Chaos. But a controlled chaos.” Yes, it was a calm, ordered chaos. A droning sound, pulsed through the room as the show began. The girls’ hair pulled into parts, spiking up in all directions. Spectacular. There was an urgency but a purity. They were being cleansed. A girl’s heavy breathing could be heard, light humming as something dripped. Blood? Sweat? Tears? She laughed, quietly and maliciously as hot orange pleats floated, contrasted to tough girl leather biker jackets. T shirts read “Silence” and “Be your hero,” totally empowering. Japanese origami like baskets all woven, so intricate, made up skirts and in neon colours that electrified our bodies. Exhilaratingly purifying. Blood splattered on the back of white cropped jackets. What has this girl done? What is she planning? The soft sound of a string orchestra began to break through her breathing, a climax and a sound of hope. A dissolved chaos. “She was coming out of the night and Lord knows where she’s going now,” Haider told us afterwards. We’re off out into this wonderful Saturday morning.
Photographs by Jason Lloyd-Evans