Have any of you ever felt nostalgia for the long gone days of *NSYNC, Backstreet Boys or The Pussycat Dolls? I personally never moved on. This year’s annual Rock the Runway fashion show featured looks inspired by boy bands and girl groups of the ‘90s and 2000s. Grungy clothes and over the (crop) top styling of bombshell models on stage swamped the runway this year. I was lucky enough to get to chat with Rebecca Kapler and Jennifer Gunnoe, the masterminds from the Center for Student Involvement behind this year’s spectacular show. It turns out that they’re still super obsessed with all of the best throwback hits and the fashion they inspired too!
Name: Rebecca Kapler, Jennifer Gunnoe
Role: Managers, Rock the Runway Fashion Show
CollegeFashionista: How did the tradition of Rock the Runway get started at Kent State University?
Jennifer Gunnoe: The show is in its 11th year now. It was originally started with the goal of allowing fashion students to reuse and recycle garments to show off their creativity. We started to expand it in 2009 by bringing in industry professionals, but always keeping with our musical theme.
CF: How are the goals of the Center for Student Involvement and Rock the Runway related?
Rebecca Kapler: We have worked with a lot of different student organizations in the process of producing this show. Many different groups have recreated images of their own favorite bands. We are also always working to bring student designers together.
CF: What inspired this year’s theme?
RK: Each year we choose a musical theme. We’ve done hip hop, British Invasion and Venetian Carnival before. When we sat down to start planning last year, we thought that the ‘90s nostalgia would keep it fun and serve as great inspiration for our designers.
CF: What most excites you about the show?
RK: I love seeing everything that we’ve worked on for so long finally come together. The energy in the room with the band, the audience, the designers and their styles is so amazing.
Learn More: Kent State University’s Center for Student Involvement has all the information on this wonderful showing of student talent.
