Magenta: A Theatrical Fashion Exposé
Act 1 - The One Side of Despair: Regret - Kymo Ifetayo
TriniView.com Reporters
Event Date: May 20, 2007
Posted: May 24, 2007
Magenta: A Theatrical Fashion Expose was held at the Ballroom of the Cascadia Hotel in St. Ann's on Sunday 20th May, 2007. This production was done under the patronage of the Minister of Social Development, the Honorable Anthony Roberts, and produced by the Rape Crisis Society of Trinidad and Tobago which has been in existence for 22 years. This theatrical exposé, directed by Richard Young, attempted to portray, using the art of fashion and models as canvases, the myriad of issues surrounding rape and violence against persons.
The Cascadia Ballroom was beautifully arranged with seating accommodations to fill the entire room and a special seating arrangement for those who wanted to dine close to the stage area. The dining tables were exquisite and quite creative with magenta bougainvillea flowers laced upon a strip of bamboo.The runway itself was a long road of silver backed by the magenta tones of an evening sky. Chandeliers hung from the ceiling adding a touch of grandeur and old elegance to the high-fashion, modernistic area setup.
 | | Act 2 - The Other Side of Despair: Hope - Simply Garnett
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Tea was served at around 4p.m. and the show officially started an hour after that. Like a Shakespearian play, the production was divided into two Acts with several scenes in between them, each addressing the multilayered mass of issues: from 'The One Side of the Despair' - ritual, naïveté, guilt, angst, innocence, regret, retreat, turmoil, denial and catharsis to 'The Other Side of Despair'- fulfillment, hope, celebration, esteem, confidence, soul searching, quest, irie and bless.
Although the name of the event may have suggested monochromatism, Magenta provided a base for a kaleidoscope of colours and issues to be presented. The fashions modeled on the catwalk ranged in length, texture, colour and style and depicted the various themes of the Magenta production by different noteworthy local fashion designers such as Dominique La Roche, Heather Jones, Stacy Smith and others.
The models themselves were very skilful and presented their wear with grace and with style. As they appeared and re-appeared on stage, members of the audience cheered them on and watched their strutting and posing talents with eager eyes. Some of the models knew exactly how to pique the interest of the audience: the males, teased by revealing rippled muscles and the females added an extra pep in their step, much to the audience's delight.
Guest starring in the production were Raymond Edwards who opened the show; Terri Lyons who sang "Ah Feel It"; Ataklan who gave the audience two selections which included the popular "Naked Walk"; the young Rap sensation 'D'Organisation'; Karla Gonzales who rendered a poem; Tashika Hudlin who showed off her powerful voice with Keyshia Cole's "Love"; and the dance group 'Unstable' who provided a tremendous energy to the event.
Before Act 2 of the theatrical production had begun, Marcus Kissoon gave a history of the Rape Crisis Society outlining some of the social issues of concern and the work that they have done in an attempt to deal with these situations. This was followed by a door prize segment where persons with lucky ticket numbers received prizes from RBTT, Beauty and Body Spa Treatment, Mary's Better Deal, Super Store Ltd., Extra Foods, Agostini Marketing and Jen Care.
Act 2 - The Other Side of Despair: Hope - Simply Garnett
The show ended, still with much excitement in the Cascadia Hotel Ballroom. The audience seemed satisfied with the dynamic production and the models and organizers also seemed satisfied with the production. The Magenta experience promises to be an annual event to keep negative social issues on the front burner and to blend it with theatrics to keep the interest of the public.
Magenta: A Theatrical Fashion Exposé in pictures:
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