Fashion Show Features the World

The crowd went wild as international students and three faculty members rocked traditional outfits at the international fashion show last Thursday in Ida Waldran Auditorium.

The show began with the participants descending the left and right aisles of the auditorium as they made their way to the stage. The audience showered them with applause and loud whistles.

Lisa Shoemake, director of international students, was the emcee for the night. She introduced each of the participants and their respective garments as they took the stage in their traditional costumes to the sound of upbeat music.

The first model took the stage in her sleeveless pale blue qi pao (often used interchangeably with cheongsam). The mandarin collar and slim-fitting long silk added an elegant touch to the garment.

Several Indian students paraded their exquisite cultural fashions. There were girls in colorful saris and a guy in a neon orange kurta. The crowd was captivated by the vivid colors of their costumes (blazing pink, royal purple, emerald green) and the way the metallic gold and silver threads glistened under the stage lights.

A student from Sri Lanka stunned the audience in her beautiful black gown which cascaded to her ankles. The top of her gown was richly embroidered. She smiled shyly throughout her one-minute walk as the crowd cheered for her.

The African students paraded the stage in bold, exotic outfits. One of them was clad in a flamboyant batik dress. It was loose-fitting and seemed dotted with all the colors of the rainbow. She wore a matching headband around her forehead. Another girl had on a baby blue floral sundress that hugged her waist well enough to accentuate her slim figure. The long skirt swooshed as she sashayed the stage. The cap sleeves created a casual flair.

There was a brief taekwondo demonstration by two male students followed by Korean female students who looked ravishing in their hanboks. The long tresses of their gowns brushed the floor as they graced the stage. They were followed by a Japanese female student who emerged in a pretty bubblegum pink yukata with delicate flower prints.

The male students from Saudi Arabia were clad in long-sleeve, ankle-length white thobes that hung loosely over their frames. White thobes are worn in summer and black thobes are worn in winter. They also wore ghutras, which are square cotton or silk scarves that were folded across the head with an end that is used to drape the face as a shield against sandstorms. Each of their heads was crowned with an igal - a thick black cord that keeps the ghutra in place.

Three female professors appeared in similar black Saudi Arabian thobes. The front of each dress was stylishly embellished in scarlet, orange and yellow. From the way the audience cheered and stayed glued to their seats, they were fascinated with the surprise.

Finally, three male students from Kazakhstan satisfied the audience’s appetite with a taste of Kazakhstan’s elaborate traditional costumes. Their shapans (long overcoats) appeared to be made from velvet and handsomely adorned with yellow. Their headgears was equally outstanding. They resembled a captain’s hat, almost triangular with a slightly pointed top.

Traditional Korean Hanbok

As Shakira’s "Waka-Waka" blared from the speakers, all the participants lined the stage for one final display. Then, there was a group dance featuring the Saudi Arabian and Kazakhstan students and an African dance performed by four African women. They dressed in a black T-shirts and black tights with a colorful sash tied around the waist.

"I loved the fashion show," Lukas Deem, a sophomore, said after the show. He said it was the first time he had seen so many different cultures and their beautiful costumes all in one night.

Rodo Leal, a Mexican exchange student, said, "It was a great experience seeing all these beautiful cultures in one place."

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