Courtesy of Sean Elliot
Connecticut College’s fourth annual POCA (People of Color Alliance) Fashion Show was intentionally reminiscent of a BIPOC dorm party. The newly renovated 1962 Room in the College Center at Crozier-Williams was decked out with dorm set pieces donated by members of the show. The show extended beyond the traditional catwalk, with models walking throughout the aisles immersing the audience fully in the show. There were three rounds of models, live music, a dance performance, and a reenactment of a dorm party crashed by Campus Safety.
Friends, family, students, staff, and faculty showed up according to the dress code: “An Extension of You.” Esteemed guests included Dean of the College Erika Smith, career advisors Persephone Hall and Dot Wang, Director of Sexual Violence Prevention and Advocacy Nicole Powell, Director of Gender and Sexuality Programs Justin Mendillo, and Kim from Jane Addams Dining Hall. It was amazing to see the new 1962 Room packed with guests arriving throughout the night.
Video projection of behind-the-scenes footage and interviews with the creators of the show provided a sneak-peak of the night ahead and left the audience in anticipation. Models talked about the walks that they were about to perform, some as pairs, and others solo. Some of these clips seemed to be filmed right before the show started as models were decked out in their hair and makeup.
The show started with two first-year MCs, who excited the crowd for the events to come. They dressed the part, sporting trendy outfits that tied together with the looks of the night. The MCs did a fantastic job and held contests to see which side of the room could cheer the loudest, as well as conducted audience interviews throughout the show.
As the first group of models strutted out, the energy of the crowd grew. Most models walked in pairs, splitting off and then reconnecting on the catwalk. Every few groups, there was a solo model mixed in. Models got to show personality and create personas on stage. Some were silly, others mogged, and the twin models performed a fantastic double vision moment.
Entertainment filled the space between each round of models. First up was a jazzy piano performance, combining piano, trumpet, and drums into an animated show. The next break consisted of a dance performance that broke out flashmob style. The whole group was seated together during the show, and as soon as their time arose, they popped out into a hip hop performance. They danced throughout the room, moving between the aisles and the stage. Over intermission, popular campus bandBrisa Azul did a joint performance with Adrian Mata and kept the crowd enthralled.
Courtesy of Sean Elliot
At the end of the show, models from every round came together for a BIPOC dorm party. As they were dancing, they pulled out fake liquor bottles from ottomans on stage, just like in a real dorm. In the middle of this get together, Campus Safety arrived with flashlights in hand. There was hilarious banter between Niamani David ‘25, the director of this year’s show, and the officer. Once David had convinced the officer that this was a casual get-together of some friends, the party resumed and the crowd cheered. This performance wrapped up the show in a fun and humorous way.
Once the fun was over, models returned back to stage for their final bows. Seniors were called up to celebrate the hard work they had dedicated to the show throughout this year. Speeches were shared, and it was beautiful to see everyone come together and celebrate such a successful show. David had shared the statement of intention she read to the team during the first stages of the show, wrapping up the speech by saying, “In all transparency, these ideas are just my own colorful blurs of fabric without the people to sew it together and make it into our outfit.”
The fourth annual POCA Fashion Show was one to remember. 85 students and a few staff members invested their time into producing this fantastic show. Popular fashion trends seen were: denim, leather, mesh, tights, mixed-metals, ties, distressed items, knit/crochet, big accessories, and timberland boots. Hip hop music filled the ears of the crowd while the models walked. This night had one of the highest attendance rates seen at Conn in a while. One could say it was the biggest dorm party Conn has ever thrown.
