By: Jasmine Tarmey
Elitist, exclusive, selective: essentially an excuse for the beautiful, rich, perfect students of York to congregate and celebrate their fabulousness. Passionate, well-rehearsed, charity oriented: a way to unite people with artistic talent and create something spectacular.
These ideas appear contradictory, but both are views of one of the most publicised annual events on campus. We are only a few weeks into the first term, but preparations are underway for Fusion 2011.
The increase in media coverage about the size of catwalk models has helped to attach a stigma to anything connected with the fashion show world. However, Fusion is not just about the clothes and models, it is also highly dance oriented and is a platform for budding student designers to realise and exhibit their ideas.
After seeing last year’s ‘Twisted Tales’, the first Fusion show I attended, I can understand why it is seen as something purely aesthetically pleasing. One memorable scene involved a stage of semi-naked males just walking around, showing off their six packs and tensing. This ‘beast scene’ seemed more wolf-whistle than wolf-man, maybe that was the ‘twist’…
The negative perception seems to arise because of the audition process since the students willing to get involved are often met with ‘Oh, I didn’t know you were one of those people.’ The problem could stem from the fact that the beautiful people in charge decide who is ‘in’ and who is ‘out’, dividing the auditionees into Fusion people and the rest of us.
In the interest of investigative journalism I attended the pre-audition workshops on Saturday of Week 3 to see whether these preconceptions are valid. The workshops aimed to show potential auditionees what was expected of them. Feeling sceptical I attended the dance and modelling sessions (given my lack of artistic skills I doubted I could blag the design ones). I didn’t get off to the best start by arriving late – three years in and the room numbers are still confusing. I walked in expecting to be judged for daring to be late to anything connected to such a prestigious event. Instead, a committee member on the door just told me to join in when I felt ready. First we did street dance which I am uncomfortable doing but no one came over and judged, kicked, or shot me for being imperfect and making mistakes. Then they taught us a jazz-style routine which I found easier despite wearing skinny jeans even though the flyers stated to wear clothes which allowed movement – again, no one admonished my shortcomings.
Next up: modelling. As the numbers dwindled my self-consciousness grew because hiding in the corner no longer seemed viable. This could be where the ‘elitist’ concept arises – someone basically judges you on walking and decides whether you are doing it ‘right’. Sadly, the experience was not as daunting as I expected. Despite having to display my ability to walk to numerous Fusion members, one of them did join in to ease the pressure. Still, I couldn’t escape thinking that my looks were the thing being judged.
After the workshops I talked to those who, come auditions, would decide who is ‘in’. Throughout the evening they tried to create a friendly atmosphere and inspire confidence in the insecure. Whilst I was there no one took down my measurements or judged my face from different angles. No one scrutinised us to see if we fitted the ‘Fusion ideal’.
However, does the ‘Fusion ideal’ exist, and is the show as exclusive and selective as believed? According to the committee, confidence is key. They look for people who can walk down a runway with their head high and not look scared to death. When I spoke to the Fusion President, Fiona Lavelle, about what the modelling requirements were she said that “anyone can model” as long as they show “confidence”.
When asked ‘who a Fusion person was’ they said “confident, friendly, outgoing, and willing to try new things outside of their comfort zone” – expectations which are not impossible to achieve. In fact, ‘they’ did not seem so different from ‘us’. Yes, some of them were impeccably dressed but no one emitted an air of superiority.
The workshops are Lavelle’s idea and they were introduced this year to show people what Fusion “was all about” and what would be expected come audition day. She wanted to dispel the commonplace beliefs since she started in Fusion with “massive preconceptions but was proven wrong.”
So why does this ‘elitist’ impression exist? Is it merely the audition process, and if so, is it justified? DramaSoc hold auditions but they are not met with the same negativity and scepticism. This could be because their productions occur in the ‘drama barn’, and a barn doesn’t really suggest a vanity parade of the university’s thin and beautiful.
Fusion unites various campus societies and if it merely existed as a performing arts show it might be viewed more positively – after all, York Come Dancing does not receive such criticism.
The stigma surrounding Fusion reverberates through campus making new people reluctant to audition through fears that they are not the ‘right kind of person’. This alone could create the air of selectivity because only the same people will keep getting involved.
Fusion auditions occur in Weeks 5 and 6 and I cannot advise avoiding them because they may not be as scary as you expect (unless they wait until the auditions to whip out the tape measure).
Fusion’s charity side is constantly overlooked even though raising money for RAG is one of its main purposes. This year the committee hopes to fund the show purely through socials so that all ticket proceeds can go to RAG allowing them to raise considerably more for charity. Last year RAG raised £22,577.04, and Fusion declared their minimum aim, easily surpassed in previous years, to be £10,000. This suggests that just under half of the money RAG raised was through Fusion. Sure those involved probably don’t join to raise money for charity, they join to be involved in a spectacular show. Nonetheless, the positive effects cannot be denied and the proposal of adding a RAG tally to the Fusion website means students will know exactly how much has been raised for charity.
So, why get involved? To Lavelle “Fusion is a great way to meet new people, have fun, try something new and gain confidence” whilst being “one of the sole opportunities where you can go up on stage in front of a huge audience, let go and have a good time.” Fusion has many facets so the experience will differ depending on the area in which you are involved. For the dressmakers Fusion is “about creating a design and putting it on a catwalk.” For the models, Lavelle admits that a stigma is attached but “it is more about fun, outgoing people who want to meet some incredible friends and raise money for charity.” And the dancers? Despite the various societies Fusion is one of the “only ways to perform a whole routine in front of such a large audience.”
Any show needs a cast, and even I am considering auditioning. Despite my complete lack of ability at street dance maybe I can walk in a straight line – as Marilyn Monroe said “I learned to walk as a baby, and I haven’t had a lesson since”.