The phrase ‘Fashion Show’ conjures up, to many people, images of twigs walking up and down a sterile white cat walk, wearing something that wouldn’t look out of place on the set of Edward Scissorhands.
However, in the case of Strut, a charity event to raise awareness of Norwood, this was far from true.
The Norwood charity works with people of all ages, with a wide range of learning and associated physical disabilities, health needs and challenging behaviour. They support people in achieving their own level of independence by encouraging each individual to reach their potential.
Hosted by Galaxy 105’s Simon Dale and Danny Oakes, Strut was one of the most glamorous nights Leeds has seen in a long, long time. It was loud, it was funky and it was fun. At times it felt like you were at a stunningly choreographed dance performance with the models dancing and at times, laughing their way up and down the catwalk to a backdrop of music fresh from the club floors.
In fact all the choreography was put together by students from various institutions around Leeds. Anthony Laser, one of the Directors of Elle Events who put on the show commented, “The choreography was brilliant! I have to mention Newsha Parvardin, Claire Prince, Oluseun Thomas and Justine Aboud. They did a fantastic job”.
Indeed they did. The show consisted of 12 sections with an interval in between. All the clothes were either designed by local designers or donated from local independent stores and were all modelled by a team of 30 stunning guys and girls who genuinely seemed to be enjoying themselves and to be comfortable in what they were wearing. Tom Durston, a Leeds University student and model in the show who got involved through some friends remarked, “It was a laugh, but I didn’t expect the response that there was”.
The organisers had planned to attract 700 people to Strut, but were delighted that they sold 60 tickets over their target. There were 50 VIP tickets available at a cost of £15 and these were snapped up straight away. Normal entry was just £8, but this was nothing compared to the quality of the show.
Undeniably, 2005 was a step up from 2004 when the charity event was held at Northern Light in Leeds city centre and only attracted 350 people along. This year saw a move to a much larger venue at Creation nightclub and a lot more PR involved on a larger scale. Sophie Spiegler, the only Leeds Metropolitan University student involved as a model and a member of Elle Events PR team commented, “There were stunning ladies and men, great organisation and a fabulous show. The audience was everything that it could be. Thank you to everyone who came down and who was involved”.
The planning of Strut took five months and involved many people especially the hard work of Elle Events directors Lisa Mandell, Jo Wolffe, Gabrielle Taylor, Jo Diamond, Sara Cohen and Anthony Laser.
The planning obviously paid off because there was an eclectic mix of people who attended the bash. Felicity Barsky, a fashion student at Manchester Metropolitan University noted that the show was “innovative and fresh”. Her friend Ronitt Bourmad also a fashion student said that the show was “up to a high standard”. Without a doubt the organisers should be pleased with themselves for an event that captured the imagination of the public and left everyone who attended duly impressed with the high quality of the show.
Each section in the show involved the models parading various clothes supplied by some of Leeds most revered independent shops including Accent, Aqua Couture, Bench, Bothered, Facile, Million Dollar, Reiss, Space and Vicky Martin to name but a few.
The first collection on stage and arguably the most powerful of the night was Masquerade, an array of wildly sophisticated evening wear and magnificent ball gowns. The male models were reminiscent of something out of the Hollywood film Eyes Wide Shut with their mysterious faces masks drawing in the crowd. The girls were just simply stunning and this set up the rest of the show.
Another collection that went down well with the ladies was Boy’s Beach Wear. The atmosphere was lifted when a series of strapping male models entered the stage to cheers of delight from the predominately female crowd. This was exacerbated when one of the models came on sporting just a skimpy pair of Speedos!
Modern fashion in a part of everyday life and this was displayed with the streetwear collection. Showcasing all parts of modern streetwear from comfy hoodies to baseball caps, basketball shoes and vests this was one of the longest sections of the night. It was also the most complicated to choreograph. The addition of basketball players and a team of break dancers, especially the ‘Crazy Legs’ dancer, really added to the flair and extravagance of the night and got the crowd involved.
There was also an interlude from the Leeds University Ballet society. Some of the members of the society put on a five minute performance which helped break up the show nicely.
Special mention must go to chosen young designer Carrie-Ann Toft and her clothing label Rene. Chosen by the organisers for her excellence, Carrie-Ann’s range was simply stunning and can be seen as the highlight of the night. When asked what her favourite section of the night was, Leeds University student and model in the show Kitty Curran was emphatic in her response: “Carrie was fantastic! She designed amazing clothes and she made them in two days!”
Kitty was not the only person to point out Miss Toft for special praise. Organiser Anthony Laser also singled out Carrie-Ann and said her involvement last year stood her in good stead for this year. Look out for Rene by Carrie-Ann Toft around Leeds.
Mr Laser wanted to give a big mention to the girls at Bothered Fran and Gemma who had some clothes in the show and who donated two hoody tops for a prize giveaway during the interval raffles. He also said, “Personally I would like to thank everyone involved from the models to the choreography, the shops who supplied us, Simon and Danny at Galaxy, everyone at Creation and most of all everyone who came down”.
Mention must be made of the after show party which encapsulated the spirit of the night. The Tequila was flowing and there was a dance-off that wouldn’t have looked out of place in a Run DMC music video! Woody and the Tequila ‘Crew’ did the show proud with their dedication to getting as much liquor down the necks of the revellers, models and organisers as possible. Of course every penny raised from the shots went to the cause of the night. The after party was of epic proportions and rounded off the night perfectly.
Strut was a huge success from all angles. Every single person who was involved or who was there had a great time. It showcased some of the best and brightest up and coming talent and most importantly upwards of £8,500 was raised for a really good cause.
Well done guys!
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