by Lucy Ortiz
The Michigan Opera Theatre is usually “dark” on Mondays. On Monday, July 12th, the lights were on as the Detroit Area Art Deco Society, along with the Michigan Opera House, co-sponsored “The Art of Fashion” as part of MOH’s “Learning At The Opera House 99” series. The evening’s program began with a lecture on “The Influence of Art Deco in Fashion” by Caroline Ashleigh of Doyle Galleries, Appraiser: Antiques Roadshow, PBS. Caroline examined the impact of the Art Deco movement on historical fashion, trends and haute couture from the late 19th Century through the first half of the 20th Century. Caroline presented a slide show and explained how important the provenance of a piece of clothing; even though it was a designer item, the value became higher if it was owned or worn by someone famous.
A fashion show, featuring some outstanding examples of ladies clothing from the 1920s to the 1940s followed Caroline’s excellent presentation.
The show was coordinated and presented by Lucy Ortiz, DAADS chairperson for the event. Lucy was ably assisted with the staging and show preparation by Bob and Kathy King, DAADS board members.
The clothing modeled during the fashion show was on loan from The Cherub’s Chest, Susanne’s Emporium, Ms. Amy LaBarge and “In The 20th Century.”
Looking their finest and wearing these exquisite gowns and dresses down the runway were “Pinky” Mancini, Susanne Smith, Ava Sands, Whitney Robertson, Pam Kamph, Judy Griech, Amy LaBarge, Katrina Bray, Cheryl Currie and Arlene Bayherlien. Although not professional models, these “ladies were EXTRA special and the audience literally sat on the edge of their seats waiting for the next model to appear,” said Gary Moy of The Michigan Opera House. Gary and Karen Di Cheria, Director of the Series, were very pleased with this first time effort and look forward to working with DAADS on future projects.
Those in attendance were asked to fill out a survey and all who responded stated the fashion show was outstanding and hoped for a repeat in the near future. Music for the evening was provided by a group of jazz musicians from the High School of The Performing Arts, Detroit.