It’s no secret that Anya Hindmarch’s bag of tricks extends far beyond witty satchels. Theatrical, highly elaborate runway sets have become par for the course for the British accessory designer. Past highlights from her London Fashion Week shows include a pixelated video arcade, flying teacups, and a live art piece involving 80,000 dominos (“I was terrified when people came in,” she says of the latter, which went off without a hitch). So when guests entered the Royal Horticultural Halls for Hindmarch’s Spring 2017 show, the white circular stage at the center seemed surprisingly plain and run of the mill. Of course, looks can be deceiving: As the musical score started, the base slowly lifted, revealing a sunken amphitheater underneath with a model ascending up the spiral. As the show progressed, the roof, which featured a circular lightbox, rotated around, tilted like a clam shell, and changed colors, almost like a rising sun. “There’s something quite spiritual about it,” Hindmarch said before the show. “You feel very vulnerable with this huge thing projected above your head.”

Photo: Debbie Bragg/Anya Hindmarch

So how does Hindmarch conceive of and, more importantly, pull off these feats? The process starts three to four months in advance of the show. “It’s very collaborative—we share ideas and mood boards,” she says. Among this season’s references: the spiral-ramped Lubetkin Penguin Pool at the London Zoo (if you aren’t familiar, it’s worth a Google search). The set is built offsite, then brought in and assembled by the production team INCA. “The whole thing has to go up in three days, so it’s a big build,” says Hindmarch. “There are hundreds of people working on it 24/7.”