LIU Post Annual Fashion Show

Angela Alfano
Staff Writer

This spring semester, Runway is hosting their an­nual fashion show which will be unveiled this coming April. This fashion show is well known on campus be­cause it has been around for over a decade. With eleven designers and over forty potential models, Samantha Vega, the President and senior at LIU Post, and her loyal Runway staff have their hands full with the current modeling auditions.

Starting off as a model during her freshman year with Runway, Vega has firsthand knowledge of what to look for in aspiring models. As someone who has an exuberant amount of passion for fashion, Vega is in search of those who share the same drive and dedication to this fashion show and the industry in general. When it comes to Runway, confidence is key. The judges have been studying the mindset as well as the appearance of the potential male and female models. The models this year appear to be very anxious to begin the actual work toward the fashion show in April. Although auditions are now closed as of last week, others are still able to show their support towards Runway by attending the final show later in the semester.

One of Vega’s favorite parts of the fashion show is watching the transition occur within the models. Through previous years, Vega recalls models that were genuinely shy and introverted during the initial audi­tions, however when the finalized debut arrived, those same bashful contestants grew into bold and confident runway models. Recognizing that not everyone is born well into their skin, Vega and her staff concentrate greatly on gaining the trust and comfort of the new members to runway. If an audition starts off a bit rocky or the person auditioning is noticeably attempting to crawl out of their bodies, Vega will stop them in their tracks, tell the talent to “shake it out” and start over when they are ready. This may seem very minimal, how­ever, in the moment it takes such a heavy load off of the contestants and provides encouragement to be them­selves in all of their glory.

When it comes to the models role in the fashion show, they are not limited to solely walking up and down the cat walk. Vega and her team often ask each member of the show to contribute ideas and make any type of suggestion they feel will increase the quality of the final project. Vega states that she recognizes the fact that those who audition as models or designers can have previous experience or are members of other clubs and organizations and may have valuable suggestions and concerns that can benefit Runway’s creation.

The talent and drive of the members of Runway is so inspiring in that they truly do care about what they represent and how others perceive their ideas and or­ganization. With so much expectation to show up last year’s event, Runway is more than positive that this year’s show will be an amazing experience that every­one should come out to witness it for themselves! This show is intended to blow the audience away and that is exactly what Runway will do with this year’s annual fashion show.