Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana herded the menfolk from a couple of Sicilian villages onto their catwalk for Spring, and the result was so curiously profound that it's no wonder they did the same thing for their Fall show, street-casting 82 men and boys. It was even more appropriate given that their theme was "devotion." You could look at the entire Dolce & Gabbana saga as one long love story—what two men are capable of producing as a result of their devotion to each other—but this collection took the notion of devotion several steps further. The religiosity of small Sicilian communities was celebrated in wide-sleeved poplin tops trimmed with priestly lace, in the religious icons printed on tees and sweats, and in the respectful black Sunday-best suits that Domenico Dolce would have remembered his father tailoring for their village.
If that all sounds a little bit too serioso for a duo who've made their name by dressing iconoclastic superstars and footballers, it's important to bear in mind that kitsch is never far away with Dolce & Gabbana. Yes, they kitted out Madonna, but we're talking about images of the real Madonna here, the kind that tourists eat up in Palermo. Likewise, the adorable granny needlepoint that the designers ladled onto velvet jackets and coats (with matching shoes). Under a catwalk hung with chandeliers garlanded with roses, Domenico and Stefano mounted a parade of cinematic clichés, from the humble altar boy in his respectful white blouse to the arrogant landowner in his big black fur coat. Between the two extremes, there were plenty of options for Dolce fans. But the most telling impression left by the show was the compact, determined dignity of the men on the catwalk. Like actors in a Pasolini movie, they managed to make a nonsense of the world in which they were briefly extras.
