36th Annual Fash Bash
Who: Famed designer Elie Tahari will unveil his fall clothing line.
Where: On the rooftop of General Motors' new Beaubien Place parking structure in downtown Detroit.
When: 6:30 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 26
Tickets: Premium patron packages are available for $750, patron-level tickets are $250 each and sponsor-level tickets are $125 each.
Contact: (313) 833-6954.
There's no question that Fash Bash – an evening of lavish fashion – is a gay "Project Runway" fanatic's heaven. This year's event will feature the unveiling of famed designer Elie Tahari's fall line, ample sex appeal and something Bravo's hit TV show doesn't offer – an open bar.
"I'm looking for a missing link here and I'm coming up empty!" said Joe Posch, the president of Founders Junior Council of the Detroit Institute of Arts, the organization that produces the event.
Sure, it's stereotypical to assume all queers relish elaborate fashions and allure, but take a look at Bravo, said Posch, the only gay person on the FTJ Board. "There's a reason Bravo has become known as the gayest network on cable and it's because it features programming involving those very things," he said. "Sometimes stereotypes are based on truth, and I for one am happy to embrace them in this instance."
A fashion first
The 36th annual Fash Bash, set for Saturday, Aug. 26, will feature Tahari's contemporary fall 2006 women's collection and launch the premiere of his men's collection, which Saks Fifth Avenue will present. "Elie Tahari is known for elegant, sophisticated and modern fashions for women, with an attention to tailoring and details that make his designs special," Posch said.
Posch looks forward to the unveiling of Tahari's men's collection. "We are the first place the collection is being shown outside of market in NYC," Posch said.
Fash's facelift
While there's plenty of black tie events or business events in Detroit, there's not many opportunities to "flex your fashion muscle," Posch said. "There has always been the appeal of the 'see and be seen' factor, where people dress to impress and watch the red carpet to see what everyone else is wearing."
Although longtime-sponsor Marshall Field's is no longer involved with Fash Bash, this year's event promises to be an upscale and more exclusive event.
"We don't have five thousand people packing the Fox Theater, dressed wacky and wild. That was a fun time, but circumstances and the times have really forced a change."
The new plan, though, tickles Posch. "We are really happy with the new style Fash Bash, and I think it certainly suits a new generation of young professionals who perhaps travel more, have lived more places and are generally more cosmopolitan than their parents were."
Steppin' out
In 1969 Fash Bash launched as an outdoor pool party at the Hotel Pontchartrain.
This year's Fash Bash will be set on the rooftop of General Motors' new Beaubien Place parking structure in downtown Detroit, overlooking the Detroit International Riverfront. "You could say we are going back to our roots with this event," Posch said. "(The location) really is in many ways an urban oasis, and the feel of the space is what prompted us to come up with our theme of 'a modern shangri-la.'"
The money collected from fundraisers at the party and corporate sponsors will benefit the DIA.
"The LGBT community has traditionally been a strong supporter of charities and the arts," Posch said. "There is sometimes a sense that the DIA is a charity powerhouse, but with all the cuts in state and city funding for the museum over the years there is a stronger need for support than ever."
