L.A. Dance Project partners with Ermenegildo Zegna Couture for Texas performances

L.A. Dance Project’s founder and artistic director Benjamin Millepied used his artistic vision to help dancers make an impression at Marfa.

For the troupe’s “Marfa Dance Episodes� last weekend in Marfa, Tex., all of the dancers wore Ermenegildo Zegna Couture custom-designed looks by artistic director Alessandro Sartori. He flew in for the performances, which were hosted by the Donald Judd-started Chinati Foundation and featured a series of live-streamed events, which were inspired by Chinati’s art collection.

The collaboration for the dancers’ fluid wardrobes stemmed from Sartori’s interest in the arts and his eagerness to partner with his friend Millepied. The duo decided to go with lightweight fabrics in a range of muted colors such as concrete gray, white, indigo blue and camel. To help keep the dancers in motion, they wore exclusive blends of silk and jersey that were meant to relay modern design. During his tenure with the LADP, Millepied has called in a range of talent for select projects including John Baldessari and Christian Lacroix for new sets, and Karl Lagerfeld, Gareth Pugh, Mary Katrantzou and Iris Van Herpen for new costumes.

The Paris Opera’s director of dance at one time, Millepied is a movie director who has worked on a number of short films about dance. (He met his wife Natalie Portman, when he was choreographing the film “Black Swan.�) Next year, the multidisciplinary artist will make his directorial debut with a musical film adaptation of “Carmen.�

The Memorial Day Weekend performances were in line with LADP’s mission to create new work and to revive seminal collaborations from influential choreographers. In addition to more expected full-length programs in traditional theater venues, the dance group also has site specific performances in nontraditional settings such as Marfa. To help raise money for the Los Angeles dance troupe, there are plans to sell more limited-edition apparel in the next few weeks through a collaboration with Chrome Hearts, a LADP spokesman said Wednesday. In the past, Alex Israel, Barbara Kruger and Janie Taylor have created one-of-a-kind items to benefit the nonprofit. Even Millepied got in on the game, designing a $25 baseball hat.

Van Cleef & Arpels helped support LADP’s residency at Chinati, as did Jenny and Trey Laird, Periscope, and the Chinati Contemporary Council, among others.

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