Roland Fitz underground fashion show

Obscure fashion figures are hard to find in a city like Omaha. The biggest fashion controversies are small liberal businesses selling feminist stickers occasionally. However, one business deep in Little Bohemia has changed the game for Omaha. This shop is called Roland Fitz. 

 Roland Fitz identifies as a vintage shop even though they deserve a designer title. They carry countless designer antiques, all for reasonable prices. They carry men’s clothes, women’s clothes, kids’ clothes and everything in between.  

Since they are just starting up in a developing neighborhood, they do not get very much traffic daily. So, in order to up their popularity, they began running underground fashion shows. These exclusive shows are invite only, limited to the most promising young fashion figures in Omaha. 

These shows happen every few months, gaining popularity and jealousy with each show. However, the dynamic of these events are not what one may expect.  

Upon entering Roland Fitz, the building looked as it usually did— not necessarily empty, but not really busy. Slowly, the calm, neutral vibe morphed into a wonderfully chaotic scene that was wildly unexpected. The models were not the kind that are typically seen hired for exclusive shows.  

There were two very basic-looking, general models that were expected. One model did not have eyebrows. One model was under five feet tall. Someone was 6’4. One had purple hair and a cigarette in hand. 

Although these models were clearly very different, once the show began, they acted as if they had known each other forever. The music was startling when it suddenly turned on. It was so beyond loud that the building itself was shaking to the rhythm of the bass. There were ladders filled with flowers and blinding lights in the corners of the room. There were fruity, unlabeled drinks, and people were smoking like it was the 1980’s. 

An hour into the show, everyone, including most of the models, was tipsy off the unnamed drinks. For some reason, this was never viewed as unprofessional. Frankly, that night, nothing was necessarily viewed as unprofessional. 

When it was time to walk, every attendee lined the runway with film cameras (and cigarettes) in hand. Every model, no matter how short or tall, eyebrows or not, strutted so confidently that people were in awe. Some people were wearing heels and shorts. Some people were wearing dresses and beaten up tennis shoes. One model who identified as male was wearing a similar dress to a 15-year-old who identifies as a girl. There were no standards and no gender roles present. Gender was never even really acknowledged. This attitude provided a new unseen sense of fashion: something that can only really be described as fashion fluidity. 

After the show came to an end, the party did not. Everyone suddenly picked up and went to the MAX for the remainder of the night, or probably until the morning (if they were of age).  

This underground fashion show is an event so exclusive, so interesting and so dynamic that it is worth fighting over an invite. The lessons taught by solely watching others were ones that will last forever, or at least until the next show.