Grease Me Up, Totty

On Sunday March 6, the annual KAOS fashion kicked off with a bang as the African and Caribbean society opened the night with an incredible dance.

KAOS stands for Kids Action Overseas, and if you haven’t heard of them before you’ve almost certainly seen them in and around UEA. KAOS at UEA run charity events around UEA throughout the year, including the Romanian shoebox appeal.

The fashion show itself this year raised money for the New Hope Children’s Centre in Kenya. Money from previous shows has been used to hire a learning assistant for the severely disabled children at the centre.

The show this year had fashion brands ranging from House of Fraser to Ann Summers and nearly 80 people on stage and behind the scenes. Seats were filled despite the terrible weather conditions, and the atmosphere in the LCR was electric.

The audience screamed and cheered as the first gorgeous models strutted their stuff down the catwalk in Mango clothing. The clothes picked by the organisers were wonderfully put together, with a particularly stunning collection from high-street favourite ARK.

The fashion was not just fantastic but entertaining to watch as dancing and cheerleading were also showcased on the catwalk.

Not only was the mixture of clothing diverse, ranging from underwear to ball gowns but (to the audience’s delight) KAOS even got a little bit cheeky with the Ann Summers girls routine, and, this Tab writer’s personal favourite, the hunky topless men in blue jeans segment.

Backstage it was as frantic as any professional catwalk show. The model’s hair and makeup was by the wonderful Paris and his team, and The Tab even spotted some gentlemen being oiled up in preparation for their topless walk. More than a few times were models seen running towards the stage a little late for their call.

Most impressive of all is that all the people involved in KAOS were volunteers from UEA. Now a staple charity at UEA, KAOS owes a lot of thanks to its current committee. A lot of effort went into a great show for a fantastic cause.

All photos: Edd Smith Photography