Louis Vuitton's Cinematic Take On Travel Has A Lot Of Celebs And Some Bumps Along The Way

Just days after an unexploded World War II bomb near Paris' Gare du Nord briefly stole headlines, a different kind of spectacle unfolded across the street: Louis Vuitton's fashion show extravaganza Monday evening.

The only explosions here at Paris Fashion Week were in fabric, form and a frenetic imagination. When designer Nicolas Ghesquiere emerged for his bow, the audience's adulation reached a fever pitch, so much so that French first lady Brigitte Macron , in a rarely seen display of exuberance, leapt to her feet to plant a kiss on him.

A station steeped in mystery

The setting was "L'etoile du Nord," described by Louis Vuitton as "a hidden station where past and future travelers converge, evoking the golden age of railway adventure." The show took place in this historic 1845 building, originally constructed for the Compagnie du Nord railway company to house its offices. Its atrium was meticulously transformed into a grand train station waiting room for the ready-to-wear display, reinforcing the theme of travel, anticipation, and adventure - Vuitton's very DNA.

From their front-row perch, Emma Stone , Jennifer Connelly, Ana de Armas , Chloe Grace Moretz, Lisa, Jaden Smith, Ava DuVernay, and Sophie Turner watched intently as projected shadowy figures drifted across the upper windows, as if ghostly travelers from another era. It was a fitting nod to Vuitton's own origins at the dawn of the Orient Express and haute couture, when posh women needed to travel with innumerable cases to house their extensive mobile wardrobes.