In Greek mythology, the story of Hades & Persephone is one of the most legendary tales of all time.  Persephone, Goddess of Spring, was wandering around the fields of Nysa picking flowers.  She was suddenly abducted by Hades, God of the Underworld, in his horse-drawn chariot.  He was in love with her and wanted her all to himself.  The earth opened up as he kidnapped her and made her his prisoner in the underworld.  She spends about 1/3 of the year there, during the winter months.  The rest of the time, she may return as the Goddess of Spring, but will always be trapped as his prisoner.  Her mother Demeter, Goddess of Agriculture, never approved of this and quite frankly, neither did Persephone.

This is my final semester at GCC, and I’m so excited to say that I will officially have another scene in this year’s show!  Producing a scene for a fashion show is a lot harder than it looks.  Thankfully, I’ve had some experience doing this in the past.  Last year as a freshman, I co-produced a scene called “Fashion Is Surreal”.  There’s a lot of different components that go in to making a scene absolutely perfect.  There’s finding different stores, designers, or retailers to work with, finding models, making sure everything is shipped/delivered on time, scheduling rehearsals, finding hair & make-up artists, coordinating all of the logistics for the rehearsal and show days, & of course, making sure it’s all documented and official.  It’s a lot more work than it sounds.  Things pop up and you have to be prepared for the unexpected.  Last year, one of my models broke her leg a week before the show and I had to find a replacement.  It comes with the territory.

This year, my scene is going to include both male and female models.  It’s going to start off showing Persephone as the Goddess of Spring, and then follow her transformation into the Goddess of the Underworld.  Think pastels, floral motifs, headdresses and accessories, followed by devil horns, dark colors, smoky eye makeup, and jewels for days.  Then, after a slight change of music and atmosphere, Hades will emerge from the shadows.  Persephone is going to be dressed in goddess-like, ethereal evening gowns & Hades is still going to look evil, just glammed up a bit.

And then there’s the fact that I’m also the Project Manager for the PR Committee!  The job of the PR committee is to make sure that the show gets promoted & advertised.  We’re responsible for coming up with an official logo, distribution to local media outlets, conducting radio interviews, posting on social media, blogging, basically anything and everything that will bring exposure to the show.

The fun part of it is…well, everything!  There’s not really a better feeling than seeing something you’ve worked so hard on and created come to fruition.  It’s beyond satisfying to see your hard work come to life in front of hundreds and hundreds of people.  The thrill of the busy-ness of those two days gives you such a rush, but when it’s over you know that it was all worth it.

Author: Jenna Curcio

Twitter: @JennaCurcio1

Instagram: @jennacurcio24

Personal blog: Jenna Inc.

Fashion Shows by definition are an event at which collections of newly designed clothing are modeled for an audience. But, for us fashion students it is so much more. Come Saturday April 29th, we will have logged hundreds of hours preparing for this capstone in our college career. From decorations, and merchandise, to models and marketing, we are tirelessly working to prepare for the 36th annual fashion show, in hopes of it surpassing any of the past shows. We have made strides of progress, but we had to start somewhere.

In the Fall 2016 semester, we were given an assignment for our Merchandise Planning and Control class; develop and present a theme for the show this coming spring. Easy, right? Not so much. I know personally I spent a couple days going back and forth trying to curate something that was fresh, but also wide open for interpretation. What I finally landed on? Elysium.

Elysium, a prominent term in Greek mythology, refers to the “heavenly bliss” of the greek afterlife. It is a direct representation of happiness and beauty. Personally I saw this as a great opportunity for myself and fellow students to demonstrate what fashions made them happy. Taking it a step further, I decided that each individual scene should be named after a Greek God or Goddess, whom the students fashions represented. It was an opportunity to incorporate a high level of inclusivity, while sticking to a strong theme. Now imagine the forum decorated to resemble Mt. Olympus…pretty amazing, right?

I am excited to be as involved as I am for the show this spring. From deciding the theme for the overall show, designing the aesthetics for the forum, working as the Project Manager for the Front of the House Committee, as well as producing a scene with a fellow student, it is a whirlwind of managing different aspects.

My scene, produced in conjunction with Sophomore, and fellow Event Planning student, Mary Nolan will focus on the Goddess, Gaia. Known as the goddess of earth, our scene will heavily feature, natural bohemian wear, mixed with earthy elements, which truly is a personification of both Mary and myself.

I am beyond humbled to have had my theme chosen for production from among my fellow students. The level of talent present in this program is astounding, and I still have a hard time grasping that people believe in my theme, as much as they do. The 2017 Fashion show will certainly be a tremendous amount of work, however there is a surplus of creativity, talent, dedication and inspiration that will hopefully push this show to be the best one to date.

Author: Ciera Schwartz

Instagram: @ciera_m

Twitter: @cieramschwartz