Thursday, April 3rd, 2014
“A Night in the Stars” was this year’s fashion show which was an incredibly rewarding experience for everyone involved. Preparing and practicing for the event started in January of this year. There were eight clients who came up with the ideas for the unique t-shirt designs. They ranged from a logo of our very own AIM HIGHER to a design showing how “dance is my life” to a smiley face reminding us to be happy, to a shirt about how they love wrestling. They were then silk-screened onto many colorful shirts. The staff and clients worked together to make the stars for decorations to go with the theme that the clients came up with. The staff made a video displaying the rehearsals to the song, “I’m Too Sexy,” and boy let me tell you they were indeed. The staff also came up with the playlist for the catwalk and the program explaining what the audience members were in for.
After program on the day of the show, clients and staff alike stayed behind to do a final dress rehearsal and get the last minor details fine-tuned and perfected. Everyone had two shirts and had to change from one to the other and the girls needed their hair and makeup done. The females high-tailed it to the Performing Arts classroom to get their faces put on and their hair styled by Maui, Branae, Maria, Sosilyn, Julie and myself.
At 6:00PM, it was show time! Maui thanked the staff that worked tirelessly behind the scenes to make this Fashion Show a success. She then introduced the very nervous Alaina and Andria, clients who started the show with a beautiful rendition of Whitney Houston and Mariah Carey’s, “When You Believe.” If one didn’t know beforehand that they were nervous, they wouldn’t be able to tell because the girls hit those high notes with ease. They made it their own while paying tribute to the stars.
Next it was time to model the clothes. Every single client did so with a precision that demonstrated their own take on the outfit and of course, attitude. The audience laughed at the funny clients when they shook their bums at them and cheered for every client whether they were a seasoned vet in the performing arts field or if this was their first time participating in anything on stage. When they were done with their walk, the clients went to the dressing room and changed their outfits for the next walk. In between the changes the aforementioned “I’m Too Sexy” video came on which generated loads of laughs and hollers from the audience and the clients who were watching it from behind the curtains. Then the next outfits were displayed, and I don’t know how it’s possible, with even more attitude and awesomeness than the last time around. Needless to say, everything came together and when push came to shove, they nailed it!
-Rachel Berelson
