eat + drink

Most style mavens will tell you: Accessories make the outfit. The same can be said for fashion shows in the Twin Cities -- if by accessories you mean the rappers, rock bands and assorted performers who seem just as important as the models in these nightclub spectacles.

At one recent fashion show, a rapper and a group of break dancers kicked the night off, pumping energy into the 400 people filling Bar-Fly in downtown Minneapolis. Backstage, more than 40 models swarmed about anxiously, their outrageous hair and skimpy outfits creating a storm of beautiful delirium. With showtime seconds away, the young stage director began waving her arms toward the curtain, attempting to wrangle the models into one straight line. She shouted, almost to remind them that they were in a fashion show:

"We're walking, we're waaaaalking!"

As the DJ's booming records exploded out of the speakers and the crowd went crazy, the models hit the stage like -- what else? -- rock stars.

This type of nightclub production is now a common sight in the Twin Cities: a fashion show that's about a whole lot more than fashion.

Forget that stuffy image you always see on TV, where you need to rock an iced-out watch or a Chihuahua in your purse to get in the front door. Many of these shows are produced by young, local promoters and are being held more as parties in bars, restaurants and nightclubs. If you look hard, you can find one almost every weekend.

Many point to mid-2004 as the spark, when local designer Anna Lee staged "Voltage: Fashion Amplified," a wildly successful show at First Avenue that brought together more than a dozen local designers and some of the Twin Cities' favorite indie-rock bands. The second "Voltage" show last summer sold out First Avenue on a normally sleepy Wednesday night.

"When you take something that's been on a pedestal and you make it accessible, people will eat it up," said Lee, 28. "Because now it's fun, and for many people, they haven't seen anything like this before."

For bands, it's often the first time they've had to share a crowd's attention. Erik Appelwick, of the Hopefuls, said he didn't mind one bit when he played "Voltage" in May.

"Truthfully, I was looking at the models too," he said.

Everybody's runway

Last year you couldn't go to a club without tripping over a runway. Young, ambitious fashionistas, including Wone Vang, Dahli Langer, Jahna Peloquin and event promoters such as Savvy House (which threw the recent Bar-Fly show), began working on their own high-concept events.

Shows appeared at most of the Twin Cities' major nightspots, from clubs such as Escape Ultra Lounge and the Fine Line to restaurants such as Solera and Fhima's.

"Pretty much any bar that has enough space for a runway, that has lighting and a place for the models to change, wants to do a fashion show," said Richard Hall, 36, owner of Wear It, a high-end boutique in St. Paul.

These shows weren't limited to downtown Minneapolis, either. Veteran promoter Brian Horst, who runs StPaulAfterHours.com, a website dedicated to bringing entertainment to St. Paul, has ramped up the frequency of his fashion shows as well.

Most people in the local fashion community are intrigued by the popularity of fashion shows but wonder whether the scene is oversaturated.

"Some of the shows you see in the high-profile clubs are less about the fashion and more about the venue trying to get in on this whole fashion outbreak," said Joshua Sundberg, 28, who owns Cliché, a shop in uptown Minneapolis.

Bar-Fly, one of downtown Minneapolis' largest clubs, has become a hub for local shows, offering one nearly every month. Co-owner Crissy Kabanuk said she tries hard not to repeat herself in terms of the style of the shows.