David Koma opened his show to the familiar lilting strains of Tchaikovsky s Swan Lake before switching to something louder, faster, and harder. That was a sure sign that the fragile ballerina of St. Petersburg s Mariinsky Theatre, name-checked in the native Georgian s show notes, was heading out the back in her tutu for a smoke.
Koma built his collection of dresses around the classic ballerina s costume: a full and flaring thigh-high skirt with a tiny waist and tight, constructed bodice. He began with his Odette in white, the pleats of her skirt brushed with powdery pink. At times he turned the tutu-esque skirt into a peplum that was either part of the dress or worn as a belt over a now-slim bottom half. The top halves had linear edges, pieced together with sheer organza, wool, embossed leather, and python. And of course, Koma ended with the black-clad Odile, naturally in leather with armorlike rectangular beading.
Who doesn t love a neat symmetry like that? But while it was interesting to watch Koma work up to his black swan with increasingly wild black-and-white geometries, the midsection of the show felt noisy and tricky at times, particularly where flashy gold python was involved. There was enough strong material to keep Koma s fans like Cheryl Cole and Beyoncé from being disappointed, but this young talent is still learning to refine his ideas.
