Courtesy of Haley Lowenthal
Sunday, April 14, featured one of the biggest events of all year on Conn’s campus: the third annual People of Color Alliance fashion show.
Featuring a completely transformed Cummings Art Center, the show impressed with its visuals from the beginning. Walking in, audience members were greeted with a light buffet as well as earthy tones and decorations to embody the “Roots that Bind” theme draping down from the second floor. The lobby featured the work of student artists, and the centerpiece of the setup was a series of brown and green panels of earth, with each one holding a letter to spell out POCA.
The first rotation began with a flourish, each time featuring a model who received even more raucous applause than the last. A fan favorite of this round was a male model wearing multiple stacked belts across his torso, accompanied by a simple, cropped, white dress shirt. This outfit would come back in a later rotation, as did many recurring themes throughout the show. Long dresses dominated this first round, featuring matching hairstyles that were works of art in and of themselves, coordinated perfectly with the colors and themes of the fashion. Traditional cultural wear also made an appearance, with a brightly colored “his and hers” outfit pair garnering immediate cheers from the crowd.
A performance by Osaretin Erhunmwunse ‘26 captivated the crowd in between rounds, as they waited on bated breath while he performed an impressively long and entirely memorized piano piece. His artistic vision came through clearly to the crowd, combining elements of classical and contemporary music to create a melody that was both recognizable and breathtakingly new. Much like the belt outfit from the first round, his style of playing would also make a comeback in accompanying Brielle Blood ‘24 after the second round.
The second round opened with whoops and cheers as the gold detailing and accessories from the first round made a comeback, accompanied by shorter dresses and pants. The styles took on a more monochrome fashion, many of them shades of stunning blue reminiscent of Conn’s colors. Stylistically bright colors as well as rich, earthy shades made another appearance, with chunky jewelry and intricate beading stealing the show on top of layers of lush fabrics, some of which brought back memories of the not-so-distant and visually stunning first round. Music by Playboi Carti and Drake accompanied the models the entire time, evoking a beat and energy the entire audience could palpably feel.
Next to take the virtual stage was Blood, who, accompanied by Erhunmwunse, delivered a jaw-dropping rendition of Michael Buble’s “Feeling Good.” These three musical legends combined to make this performance happen, with Blood showing off her impressive range in many innovative runs throughout the song. Her dress was simple, classic, and downright elegant, evoking many cheers from the audience when she first debuted while singing.
Following a brief intermission in which the audience chattered excitedly about their favorite performances, outfits, and the sheer scenery of it all, Shawnia Yon ‘24 graced the catwalk with an interpretive dance performance. She dressed in black with gold flakes in her long hair, inspiring one audience member and a close friend of mine to dub her hair movements “hairography,” a class of choreography in itself. She danced around the path of the models, earning shouts of praise at every corner.
The third rotation was the metaphorical and literal cherry on top, with deep red tones accompanying black in more than one outfit to make it a visually stunning series of designs. Music by Drake was featured again, as streetwear made a comeback from the first round along with many textured, layered outfits. The accessories took the cake on this rotation, however, with gloves, more belts, shoulder pads, and strikingly, a pair of bright red pumps, evoking a “business casual meets cool” feel. Miniskirts graced the runway this round, with a belted skirt and chrome heart detailing becoming two highlights of the show. Earth tones closed the show out, with the audience leaning forward in their seats for every outfit that came around the corner, craning necks to see what could possibly top the last outfit they had just seen.
Finally, a vocal performance by Kelley Wilson ‘25, who wore a stunning blue and white dress that stood out from the greens of the rest of the show, brought the house down. Her heartfelt vocal stylings brought tears to the eyes of many audience members, leaving those on the second floor balcony craning their necks to get closer to her performance.
A heartfelt executive board introduction and big thank you to Lyndon Inglis ‘24, whose brainchild was this now-third annual POCA fashion show, closed out the night. The hardworking behind-the-scenes members of the show got to walk as well at the end, showing off their own outfits of the night. All in all, it was a once-in-a-lifetime experience unique to Conn, leaving the entire campus and larger community excited for next year’s fourth annual show!
