Inside a big top, Dior puts on circus-themed couture

Dior drew inspiration from the top of the big top for a ludic couture show held Monday in Paris, where models inside a circus-style tent walked through a human arch made of moving acrobats.

The theme seemed to well serve designer Maria Grazia Chiuri, who has struggled to fly in recent seasons.

The acrobatics also dovetailed with some of the recent film roles of Dior's VIP guest, British actress Felicity Jones, who explained all to The Associated Press.

A model wears a creation for the Dior SpringSummer 2019 Haute Couture fashion collection presented in Paris, Monday Jan. 21, 2019. (AP PhotoFrancois Mori)

Here are some highlights of Monday's spring-summer 2019 couture collections in Paris.

DIOR CIRCUS

Hundreds of vintage light bulbs like the ones used at fairgrounds lit up Dior's life-sized circus and a giant wooden pole held up the big top. Guests at the show inside the Rodin Museum gardens gawped at the decor.

Models wear creations for the Dior SpringSummer 2019 Haute Couture fashion collection presented in Paris, Monday Jan. 21, 2019. (AP PhotoFrancois Mori)

Acrobats dressed in the black-and-white costumes of Pierrot, the clown character from French pantomime, entered the stage area on each other's shoulders to begin the whimsical collection that riffed on the circus theme.

Dior has had a long history with the big top — from a famous 1955 photo shoot with elephants in Paris' Winter Circus to the circus theme picked for one of former designer John Galliano's most memorable shows.

And the circus seems to have provided Chiuri, who's struggled to take off since taking Dior's creative helm in 2016, the perfect muse to unlock her creativity.

A model wears a creation for the Dior SpringSummer 2019 Haute Couture fashion collection presented in Paris, Monday Jan. 21, 2019. (AP PhotoFrancois Mori)

It was light and fun, without being heavy-handed or overly literal.

A model in a chic sequined helmet wore a white origami skirt inspired by a clown's ruff and featuring a slightly dropped waist.

A clown's multi-colored costume spawned a fantastic knitted tulle playsuit with a stylish Juliette sleeve — a shape repeated throughout the 68-look collection.

A model wears a creation for the Dior SpringSummer 2019 Haute Couture fashion collection presented in Paris, Monday Jan. 21, 2019. (AP PhotoFrancois Mori)

Another tulle jumpsuit sported a multi-colored streak in satin bands and dramatically square shoulders.

It was worn atop a "tattooed" body suit that conjured up images of Victorian-era circus performers, one of many details that gave this collection a rich, historic depth.

FELICITY JONES ON ACROBATS

Designer Maria Grazia Chiuri accepts applause at the end of the Dior SpringSummer 2019 Haute Couture fashion collection presented in Paris, Monday Jan. 21, 2019. (AP PhotoFrancois Mori)

Felicity Jones spoke to the AP from under Dior's big top and said she coincidentally she had just finished playing an acrobat for a movie called "Aeronauts" that reunited with "Theory of Everything" co-star Eddie Redmayne.

"This set is so fitting. It's obviously in the air," she said, smiling.

The feminist edge Chiuri has brought to Dior since becoming the first female designer in house history also mirrored the "kick-ass women" Jones chooses to play, including U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg in the biopic "On the Basis of Sex."

A model wears a creation for the Dior SpringSummer 2019 Haute Couture fashion collection presented in Paris, Monday Jan. 21, 2019. (AP PhotoFrancois Mori)

"She's a formidable woman. She's someone who's changed the face of gender equality in the world, so it was an enormous privilege to be playing her," Jones added.

IRIS VAN HERPEN TAKES FLIGHT

Dutch wunderkind Iris Van Herpen's couture took flight in the Palais de Beaux Arts in Paris' chic Left Bank.

Model Elsa Hosk wears a creation for the Ralph & Russo SpringSummer 2019 Haute Couture fashion collection presented in Paris, Monday Jan. 21, 2019. (AP PhotoMichel Euler)

The show evoked winged forms and organic life as inspired by visual artist Kim Keever, who drops paint pigment into water.

The arty setting was an appropriate backdrop for the sculptural creations that borrowed from works housed at the Louvre, located hundreds of meters (yards) away.

An organic cobalt blue gown featured bare shoulders and a pair of pleated wings that created a highly dramatic dynamic. It evoked the Louvre's famed Hellenistic sculpture, The Winged Victory of Samothrace.

A model wears a creation for the Ralph & Russo SpringSummer 2019 Haute Couture fashion collection presented in Paris, Monday Jan. 21, 2019. (AP PhotoMichel Euler)

Elsewhere, the marbled form of insects — or perhaps the intricate molecular structures of stones and crystals? — were reflected in a beautiful series of draped and loosely fitted silk gowns.

Long Asian sleeves on vivid red and pearly white dresses added elegance and an opportunity to create an interesting trapeze silhouette.

Van Herpen is a couture poet.

Models wear creations for the Ralph & Russo SpringSummer 2019 Haute Couture fashion collection presented in Paris, Monday Jan. 21, 2019. (AP PhotoMichel Euler)

SCHIAPARELLI IS WHIMSICAL

Whimsical would be the word to best describe Schiaparelli's spring-summer couture. Designer Bertrand Guyon presented a fantastical universe of sheeny silks, softly architectural silhouettes and beautiful colors.

The embellishments and shimmering embroideries on diverse designs were more than a match for the gilded gold of the show venue, Paris' ornate Garnier Opera House.

A model wears a creation for the Ralph & Russo SpringSummer 2019 Haute Couture fashion collection presented in Paris, Monday Jan. 21, 2019. (AP PhotoMichel Euler)

Anachronism and contrast ruled.

Cowboy boots cut a dramatic style below a medieval mini dress with speckled and billowing Juliette sleeves.

A 1950s bar jacket and peplum ensemble and contemporary pants sported floral scenes that made it appear the pieces were used as a painter's canvas.

A model wears a creation for the Ralph & Russo SpringSummer 2019 Haute Couture fashion collection presented in Paris, Monday Jan. 21, 2019. (AP PhotoMichel Euler)

And colored feathers that embellished several dresses gave the collection a dreamy quality as they slowly floated by, with the occasional plume falling gently to the ground.

LANVIN APPOINTS NEW DESIGNER

Lanvin, the world's oldest continually running couture house, has suffered creative turbulence and questions about its direction ever since the departure of lauded couturier Alber Elbaz in 2015.

A model wears a creation for the Ralph & Russo SpringSummer 2019 Haute Couture fashion collection presented in Paris, Monday Jan. 21, 2019. (AP PhotoMichel Euler)

Since then, there has been a steady stream of disappointing designers whose collections have prompted lukewarm reviews.

On Monday, the house named a new creative director: Bruno Sialelli.

"After a thorough and extensive application process involving an incredible array of talented designers," Sialelli's profile was that which embodied best "this new chapter in the house's history," Lanvin said.

A model wears a creation for the Ralph & Russo SpringSummer 2019 Haute Couture fashion collection presented in Paris, Monday Jan. 21, 2019. (AP PhotoMichel Euler)

Sialelli was poached from his position as the men's design director for Loewe.

He said he aims to bring "emotions through compelling stories" and to define "a modern attitude" while continuing Lanvin's iconic legacy.

The French hold a precious place in their hearts and culture for Lanvin, founded in 1889 by female fashion trailblazer Jeanne Lanvin.

A model wears a creation for the Ralph & Russo SpringSummer 2019 Haute Couture fashion collection presented in Paris, Monday Jan. 21, 2019. (AP PhotoMichel Euler)

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Models wear creations for the Ralph & Russo SpringSummer 2019 Haute Couture fashion collection presented in Paris, Monday Jan. 21, 2019. (AP PhotoMichel Euler)

A model wears a creation for the Ralph & Russo SpringSummer 2019 Haute Couture fashion collection presented in Paris, Monday Jan. 21, 2019. (AP PhotoMichel Euler)

A model wears a creation for the Ralph & Russo SpringSummer 2019 Haute Couture fashion collection presented in Paris, Monday Jan. 21, 2019. (AP PhotoMichel Euler)

A model wears a creation for the Ralph & Russo SpringSummer 2019 Haute Couture fashion collection presented in Paris, Monday Jan. 21, 2019. (AP PhotoMichel Euler)

A model wears a creation for the Ralph & Russo SpringSummer 2019 Haute Couture fashion collection presented in Paris, Monday Jan. 21, 2019. (AP PhotoMichel Euler)

Designers Tamara Ralph, left, and Michael Russo accept applause at the end of the Ralph & Russo SpringSummer 2019 Haute Couture fashion collection presented in Paris, Monday Jan. 21, 2019. (AP PhotoMichel Euler)

Designers Tamara Ralph, left, and Michael Russo accept applause at the end of the Ralph & Russo SpringSummer 2019 Haute Couture fashion collection presented in Paris, Monday Jan. 21, 2019. (AP PhotoMichel Euler)

A model wears a creation for the Ralph & Russo SpringSummer 2019 Haute Couture fashion collection presented in Paris, Monday Jan. 21, 2019. (AP PhotoMichel Euler)

WARSAW, Poland (AP) — Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk expressed satisfaction on Monday after a series of candidates supported by his party won weekend races for mayor.

Candidates from his pro-European Union centrist Civic Coalition, or running with the party's backing, won in a series of cities in the second round of local elections held on Sunday, among them Krakow, Poznan, Wroclaw and Rzeszow.

“It is very difficult to clearly say who won and who lost,” Tusk said Monday. “But if we compare these results, especially in the most attractive places, on these attractive battlefields ... then I actually have reasons for satisfaction.”

“Law and Justice has simply disappeared in many places,” Tusk added at a news conference, referring to the main opposition party.

The results put Civic Coalition in a favorable position as the country looks next to elections to the European Parliament on June 9.

Mayors were chosen in a total of 748 cities and towns where no single candidate won at least 50% of the vote during the first round on April 7.

Candidates for Tusk’s party also recaptured cities where they had not held power for many years, including Zielona Gora, Legnica and Torun.

The local and regional elections were viewed as a test for Tusk's pro-European Union government four months after it took power at the national level. Sunday's second round strengthened the Tusk government's leverage in the cities, which should facilitate cooperation on development projects and allotment of EU funds.

Tusk's allies also won in some places in the first round two weeks ago, including in Warsaw, where incumbent Mayor Rafal Trzaskowski was an easy victor.

In the first round, the right-wing Law and Justice, prevailed on the level of regional assemblies in the country's 16 provinces, where it took 34.3% of the votes, while Tusk's Civic Coalition got 30.6%. Law and Justice governed on the national level from 2015-23.

Tusk’s socially liberal Civic Coalition traditionally has strong support in cities, while Law and Justice has a more solid base in conservative rural areas, particularly in eastern Poland.

Civic Coalition is the largest group in a three-party coalition that governs the EU nation of 38 million people. The coalition is pro-European Union but otherwise spans a wide ideological spectrum with left-wing politicians in the Left party as well as conservatives in the Third Way.

Polish voters take part in a local runoff election in Lomianki, near Warsaw, Poland on Sunday, April 21, 2024. Voters are choosing mayors who did not win outright in the first round of the election two weeks earlier. (AP Photo/Czarek Sokolowski)

Campaign posters promote candidates as Poles vote in local and regional elections in Lomianki, near Warsaw, Poland on Sunday, April 21, 2024. Voters are choosing mayors who did not win outright in the first round of the election two weeks earlier. (AP Photo/Czarek Sokolowski)

Polish voters take part in a local runoff election in Lomianki, near Warsaw, Poland on Sunday, April 21, 2024. Voters are choosing mayors who did not win outright in the first round of the election two weeks earlier. (AP Photo/Czarek Sokolowski)

Polish voters take part in a local runoff election in Lomianki, near Warsaw, Poland on Sunday, April 21, 2024. Voters are choosing mayors who did not win outright in the first round of the election two weeks earlier. (AP Photo/Czarek Sokolowski)

FILE - Poland's Prime Minister Donald Tusk reacts during his and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy meeting with students in Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, Jan. 22, 2024. Poland's Prime Minister Donald Tusk is celebrating a victory on Monday April 22, 2024 after a series of candidates supported by his party won weekend races for mayor. (AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky, File)

FILE - Poland's Prime Minister Donald Tusk listens to the media in Berlin, Germany, Friday, March 15, 2024. Tusk is celebrating a victory on Monday April 22, 2024 after a series of candidates supported by his party won weekend races for mayor. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi, File)