Fashion Week will highlight trends around the globe, bring people back together

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Fashion Week of Rochester is kicking off next week with an international theme, featuring a show that highlights fashions from around the world.

Wednesday night’s show will feature Irish Dancing and fashions from various countries including India, Mexico and the Philippines.

Elaine Spaull, executive director of The Center for Youth and a Fashion Week organizer, says the global COVID-19 pandemic emphasized the fact that we are all connected.

“We plan to bring that togetherness, that connectedness, that energy to the show,” she says.

The five-night event, titled “Light the Way,” runs from Tuesday, Oct. 12 through Saturday, Oct. 16. It will highlight local and national designers, retailers, community leaders and talent.

This year’s Fashion Week will not only have a new look, but a new location. It is being held for the first time at The Dome Arena in Henrietta.

Fashion Week 2021 events and runway shows are as follows:

• Tuesday, Oct.12: Designer and Boutique Pop-Up Retail Event, where patrons can purchase items from designers whose fashions were featured on the runway.
• Wednesday, Oct. 13: Light up the World Runway Show, which will include international designs.
• Thursday, Oct. 14: The Edge of Light Runway Show, which features an urban, gritty tone with edgy fashions from new and veteran designers, as well as unique creations from Rochester Institute of Technology’s jewelry designing department.
• Friday, Oct. 15: Bright Lights, the Rochester Runway Show, which features community members, such as local businesspeople, walking the runway.
• Saturday, Oct. 16: Light up the Night Finale Runway Show, featuring lingerie, bathing suits and wedding dresses.

Spaull said being able to hold the show at The Dome is a great opportunity to partner with and bring energy to a venue that has supported the community during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Dome served as a location for COVID-19 vaccinations for area residents.

“We worked hard to find a memorable location,” Spaull says. “This is a place that helped save our community.”

She added that The Dome is a safe and secure location and, because of its ample size, will be able to safely accommodate attendees.

The facility recently made a major investment and installed a new, state-of-the-art air quality system, she added.

Meghan Mundy, the event’s chief fashion organizer, is most excited about being able to hold the event this year after it was cancelled last year due to COVID-19.

“I am so excited to see the community come together again and celebrate the amazing talent Rochester has to offer,” Mundy said. “I am very happy to see the Rochester Week family back together.

The annual fundraiser for The Center for Youth attracts thousands of people to the region and raises funds and awareness for youth homelessness, youth shelters and emergency programs, organizers said.

The Center for Youth’s services include support for families and children, including two crisis nursery locations, Chrysalis House for parenting and pregnant teens and their children, an LGBTQ and trafficked homeless residence, multiple youth shelters and more.

The pandemic had a major impact on homeless teens who did not always have the option to shelter at home in a safe environment, Spaull noted.

This event is an opportunity to support those who were in need over the past 18-plus months, and those who continue to have a need.

“I don’t know how we’ll get over this unless we all come together,” Spaull says.

Tickets for Fashion Week Rochester are on sale until Noon on Oct. 13 and are available for purchase online at fashionweekofrochester.org.

Andrea Deckert is a Rochester-area freelance writer.