Comme Dancing: Repetto's Latest

For a dance wear brand, Repetto has unparalleled fashion credentials. Devotees have included style icons Brigitte Bardot, who first championed ballet flats as suitable for everyday life in And God Created Woman; Serge Gainsbourg, who made the white Zizi jazz shoe as much a part of his look as a Gauloise hanging from his lips; and Kate Moss, who has been spotted sporting Repetto’s Jackson Loafer (named after, and dedicated to, the late Michael Jackson). The company founded by Rose Repetto in 1947—while always focusing on producing professional-quality products for dancers—has deliberately courted style-minded customers via its recent collaborations with notable designers, including Karl Lagerfeld and Veronique Branquinho. For Repetto’s 60th anniversary in 2007, a host of designers reinvented the brand’s classic styles for a traveling exhibition: Proenza Schouler covered a Zizi jazz shoe in gold raw silk and Jean Paul Gaultier showed a Breton-striped tutu, while Comme des Garçons went for a rainbow version. It wasn’t the first time that the Rei Kawakubo had worked with Repetto—the Comme designer has worked with the dance company on several collaborative collections (including a vastly successful studded and riveted shoe line) since 2004. The two companies again join forces this season, with Comme des Garcons updating the Zizi and BB ballerina pump with bold, block colors. Perfect for an early fall stroll around the harbor of St. Tropez.