“You know, I suffered a lot. My path has been one of humiliation, of renunciation, of degradation.” Adele’s letter to her father, Victor Hugo
We are allowed inside the Antonio Marras show early so we can sit and read the tragic story of Adele H., who writes her father after an 8 year absence.
The letter begins with an innocent adventure by the Sardinian seaside where Adele finds love, and she travels with her beau on a journey that ends aboard a transatlantic ship to Nova Scotia.
She learns different languages and discovers different cultures, and she also discovers degradation and heartache when her lover abandons her.
“I blackmailed him, I offered him prostitutes, I had him hypnotized, I pretended to be pregnant, I ruined a profitable marriage proposal for him …”
This story does not end well for our heroine Adele. And this is conveyed in the clothes which tell their own story starting with innocent floral print dresses decorated in wildflower bouquets, dog-roses and ruffles, and end with long military inspired coats with big lapels, hoods, and capes embellished with decoration and ruching.
Fabrics and ruffles, smocking, pinstripes, lace borders and long and asymmetrical pleated panels are all mixed up – like a crazy girl in love. Plaids are introduced later in the show in pale yellow, a sage colored green and a faded pink.
She is a bit Spanish, a bit arabic, a bit latina.. she is a bit weathered, a bit sad but not completely ruined.
Until the end, she believes in love.
