Rebel for a cause

This year’s Vogue Charity Fashion show goes back in time to the Victorian era

Laura Rae Chaisson (centre) shone as one of the lead dancers in this year’s Vogue Charity Fashion Show.
Image by: Tiffany Lam
Laura Rae Chaisson (centre) shone as one of the lead dancers in this year’s Vogue Charity Fashion Show.

It’s a tale of elegant radicals where the classic is brought together with the avant-garde — and it’s uniquely Vogue.

From dizzyingly dramatic dance numbers to sassy sashays down the runway, this year’s Vogue Charity Fashion Show stepped up to fulfill the creative requirements of their theme — Victoriana: Rebels and Revolutionaries. All proceeds this year are being donated to the Kingston chapter of the Sunshine Foundation.

With over 130 people involved in the choreography, modeling and designing of the show, artistic talent wasn’t lacking.

The collection of clothes from the 2013 line-up included the casual and the extravagant. Dressed in Jasmin Laingchild’s designs, the models walked down the runway in comfortably chic outfits with just a hint of risk with fringe and bold striped patterns.

Laingchild’s designs exemplified the rogue rebel portion of the show, but the historical factor came with Elizabeth Doney’s Victorian era pieces perfect for the show’s theme.

The girls were in floor-length, flower-adorned and boldly coloured dresses, impressively sauntering on stage without missing a beat. The male models looked especially refined in their large pants and walking sticks.

The fashion in the show perfectly unified the theme of the show overall — a subtle amalgamation of classy period pieces and dark debonair clothes.

The models had just the right amount of attitude for the job. When Katalina Ong and Magda Marczuk took to the stage, their intensity stood out amongst the other models and I expected them to keep stomping down the aisles of the theatre and out the door.

But Vogue isn’t just a fashion show, it’s a supremely intricate showcase of dance as well.

Amidst the impressive performances, I found myself almost always watching just one dancer — Laura Rae Chiasson. When everyone was extending an arm or pointing a toe, her ligaments went that extra inch to create an exquisite moving picture. It’s no wonder she was in every single dance number, or at least every number that stood out in my mind.

Even the music exemplified the show’s two-fold theme well. Choices like Psy’s “Gangnam Style” delivered the modern feel, while a remixed version of Lana Del Rey’s “Blue Jeans” gave the perfect soft and classic feel to the catwalk.

As the show came to a close with the traditional final cast bows to Madonna’s “Vogue,” I was totally in awe of the work being done by students.

It almost makes you feel like striking a pose yourself.

Vogue’s Victoriana: Rebels and Revolutionaries is at the Grand Theatre tonight and tomorrow night at 8 p.m.

Tags

Laura Rae Chiasson, Review, Sunshine Foundation, Victoriana: Rebels and Revolutionaries, Vogue Charity Fashion Show

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