From the Anime Club to the Yarn Cafe (knitting and crochet), student clubs are an important part of life at FIT. One popular club is Runway27, which imagines, plans, and produces an immersive fashion show. Founded by Fashion Business Management Professor Lori Massaro in 2013 with 25 students, the club now has 150 student members hailing from many different majors. Runway27 members come up with the theme, source the garments and accessories, do hair and makeup, secure sponsors, design the set, capture video and photo content, and market the event to the FIT community—all while navigating a busy curriculum and their own social lives.
This year’s high energy show, Synergy, held Nov. 16 in the Haft Theater, was told through the four elements of life: air, earth, fire, and water. The four elements were demonstrated in the garments, colors, and textures in this year’s show and were presented by an exciting cast of ethnically diverse and body-inclusive models, who are also FIT students. The makeup featured beautiful eye adornments to signal which element they represented. Even the pre-show mocktails matched the evening’s theme.