Gallery • 16 Photos

Elizabeth Nation

WINGING IT: Junior Jane McKenna walks across the stage of the MAC, modeling for junior designer Isla Poole. Poole’s design features layers of satin and draped pearls, along with McKenna's favorite part of the look: the wings. “The look itself was so striking to look at,” McKenna said. “The huge wings were incredible and really well done, but the smaller details like the hair and makeup just really bought it all together.” McKenna found that the final design was connected to the theme while at the same time reflective of Poole’s personal style. “I think she's a very creative and artistic person, and she has a very distinct personal style that is really prominent in her design,” McKenna said. “ It's whimsical and also kind of grungy, and there are so many little details that really show how much time and thought she put into the whole look.” For her walk, McKenna focused on bringing the audience's attention to the creativity of the design, making sure to dramatize her arm movement and emphasize the wings. “I have no experience in modeling,” McKenna said. “It helps to pretend to be a lot more confident than you really are, also making sure that the audience has enough time to see the design by walking slow.”Throughout the process, McKenna took inspiration from everyone's varying interpretations of the theme. “I really loved seeing all the different designers’ looks,” McKenna said. “I saw bits and pieces throughout the months but everything came together on Friday.” Caption by Maggie Mass.

McCallum had its annual student-directed fashion show in the MAC this past weekend with a performance on Saturday at 7 p.m and a matinee on Sunday at 2 p.m. The theme of the show was “Celestial Wilderness: Beyond the Horizon” and was open to any student designers and models. Students engaged the theme with a variety of different concepts with many students incorporating space and mythical creatures like angels and mermaids, with many students additionally drawing inspiration from nature. Designers worked on their pieces for several months with several designer workshops held by the junior and senior directors and sophomore interns.

Alongside the show being a performance for the McCallum community, it was also a competition for designers to earn money and recognition for their portfolios. Judging took place before the performance on Saturday, with third and fourth place winners announced at Saturday night’s production and first and second place winners announced on Sunday. Senior London Holtz won third place for her designs and juniors Kirsten Hamase and Abigail Peacock won fourth. Senior Sadie Swinney won second place and senior Rita Hagerty won first place for her designs.

We are pleased to spotlight the student-directed, annual fashion show for this week’s Tuesday Top 10.

DANCING THE KNIGHT AWAY: Senior Logan Daves dances alongside her fellow models, sophomore Maggie Peterson, senior Kaitlyn Gerrie, senior Gabie Rodriguez, and junior designer Ronan Henson. Daves has been a model at every fashion show since her freshman year, and is sad to leave it behind, as she’s looked forward to it every year.

“My favorite part of the show is the community, because everybody gets close and you’re doing stuff that is uncomfortable at first and you help people to get ready every year because it is like a whole exercise, and everyone becomes best friends; there’s no boundaries,” Daves said. “Things go wrong and things happen, but you all figure it out together.”

This year, Daves modeled for three separate designers: Reyn Linder, Ronan Henson and Rita Haggerty, who ended up winning first place. As a model, Daves has greatly improved her confidence on stage since her freshman year.

“Freshman year, I was really scared, and I literally almost quit because I didn’t know anyone that was doing it,” Daves said. “But after that, it was fun to help get people into it, and getting to know yourself and other people better, so I definitely got better at that.”

For Daves, modeling is a way to show off her friends’ creative capabilities, even if it is stress-inducing for her.

“Modeling is fun, because I feel really excited to be able to be showing off my friend’s looks, and what they made, and honestly when you’re up there you just kind of black out you don’t really know what’s going on,” Daves said. “You show up, you show the looks off, you feel great and then it’s over, and sometimes it’s done, but sometimes you have multiple looks so you get back, and you keep going, but it’s always fun.”

At the end of every show, all the designers and models rush the stage and dance to music as a final goodbye to the audience before the winners are announce. For Daves this was a very special moment, as it was the last time she would ever get to experience it.

“That part was honestly really fun,” Daves said. “We were dancing, especially the last day, everyone was crying and just really happy. It was just a cute little moment for all of us.”

Caption by Sophia Manos. Photo by Elizabeth Nation.

AN OPEN INVITATION: The fashion show welcomes underclassmen to join the community that puts on the show. Sophomore model Elena Casare had her debut at the 2025 McCallum fashion show on Saturday night. “I really liked modeling because I feel confident on the stage,” Casare said after the Sunday show. “I was nervous before, but everyone is there to support you.” Her debut has inspired her to continue her involvement with the fashion show. Although she is excited to walk again next year, she did say her first trips down the runway were a little unnerving.  “It’s weird knowing everyone is looking at you,” she said. Caption and photo by Isa Truan.

AN ASTRONOMICAL SUCCESS: Sophomore Hezekiah Hunter strikes a pose in the opening night of the fashion show. Since the fashion show’s theme was “Celestial Beginnings,” Dede Reagins, Hunter’s designer, modeled the dress after the night sky. To achieve that effect, Reagins adorned the navy fabric with glitter and diamonds to look like stars.

“She wanted to do something that has to do with galaxies and space because she really likes science,” Hunter said. “She wanted my outfit to look like what people see when they look up into the sky.”

Since the design was inspired by space, Hunter got to learn a lot of new information about the stars from Reagins, who is interested in both astronomy and fashion.

“It was really special because I don’t know a lot about space, so when Dede was explaining her process, I got to learn a lot about space,” Hunter said.

Besides learning new information about the cosmos, Hunter also got to learn how to model. It was her first time partaking in the fashion show.

“I decided to be a model for the fashion show because I had never done it before and I wanted to see what was up,” Hunter said. “I also really like fashion and modeling, so I thought it would be a fun thing for me to try out.”

Hunter felt that her experience was made even better by getting to work with Reagins. Hunter and Reagins know each other well as they are both technical theater majors and the original members of BLU3 Dance Crew.

“We’re such close friends, so it’s much easier to communicate with her,” Hunter said. “I think when you get paired with a designer you don’t know, it might be scary to talk to them, and it might be hard to meet up, but because we text each other all the time and see each other all the time, I can ask her questions whenever I want to and ask her for updates.”

Although Hunter enjoyed being in the fashion show, she admits that it was sometimes difficult to balance the fashion show with her other interests. Hunter is the founder of BLU3 Dance Crew, which is currently preparing for its upcoming performance at K-pop Night hosted by LASA’s Chorepop. She also acted in Freaky Friday, which had rehearsals every day.

“We would stay there for as long as we could and then we would have to run to the MAC so that we could get ready for rehearsal,” Hunter said.

Despite the difficulties three extracurriculars presented, Hunter is grateful that she participated in all of them.

“I got to do things that involve my passions, so even though it was chaotic, I’m glad that I did it because I got that experience,” Hunter said.

Caption and photo by Elizabeth Nation.

LEAVING A LASTING IMPACT: Senior Larsen Krell stands amongst fellow fashion show directors on the final night of this year’s show. Krell’s work on this year’s production began months ago when the directors started to raise funds and brainstorm themes for the show, ultimately deciding on “Celestial Wilderness: Beyond the Horizon.”

“It was a very bittersweet moment for me,” Krell said. “There were a lot of tears shed because I was thinking about how much I love the team that puts this show on and the hard work that we all put in to make the show a success.”

Krell had previously been a model but stepped up when there was a vacancy in the director’s crew. Part of Krell’s job was picking her successors and organizing the event between the models, designers and school.

“I’ve been watching the fashion show here for so many years, and I think this was the best one yet,” Krell said. “We were under pressure to get lots of ticket sales and market the event well, and so I think we accomplished all the goals we set four ourselves. Just watching it I was like ‘this is perfect.’”

Krell hopes that the senior directors had a significant impact on the fashion show and looks forward to seeing its success in the future.

“I’m just so very proud of our work and love our little team running it,” Krell said. “I’m super excited to see what the junior and sophomore directors have planned because I know it will be amazing.”

Caption by Nate Williams. Photo by Daniela Di-Capua.

MODEL BEHAVIOR: Junior Zane Shieh modeled for Ronan Henson and Lyn Gerrie for two looks (four pieces) in this year’s fashion show. Having participated in the show last year, Shieh was motivated to model again, and was excited about participating in the show for another year.

“I chose to be in the fashion show this year because last year was just a lot of fun, and I wanted to do it again,” he said. “I did not design sadly. I wanted to but wasn’t able to due to being too busy, but next year I will be designing!”

Overall, Shieh was happy with how the show went and is looking forward to next year.

“My favorite thing about the show was being able to see all the other designers’ looks and collectively try to put on a really cool show,” he said.

Caption by Priya Thoppil. Photo by Elizabeth Nation.

FROM Z TO A: Designer Zora Adams dances back with her three models: sophomore Carlo Hinsdale, name and senior Riley McGarity. Adams is a sophomore and a first-year designer and intern in the fashion show. She enjoys both sewing and crocheting and loved the fashion show experience. She made three looks for the celestial wilderness theme and says that the fashion show made her a better designer.

“[My looks consisted] of a bunch of different designs incorporating natural materials and elements.” Adams said. “I wanted my looks to look interesting and alien-y. I had five pieces that were crocheted out of my collection, and all the rest were sewn. I also made a belt that was macrame, and I made it up as I went. I spent a lot of time working on my looks; towards the end it got very stressful because I had a lot to do in very little time but I’m proud of the way it came together.”

Caption by Delaney Lavelle. Photo by Daniela Di-Capua.

A ZINGER FROM ZENOBIA: Freshman Zenobia Sims strikes a pose during the fashion show in a flowy white dress designed by junior Lidia Meaux. Though Sims said she knew vaguely of Meaux through her sister’s friend prior to the show, she was assigned to model for Meaux’s design randomly. Despite the unfamiliarity, the model and the designer turned out to be the perfect fit.

“[Meaux] makes really great dresses, and I was very proud to be one of her models for the fashion show,” Sims said. “So I thought, ‘Hey, why not show it off for everyone?’”

Sims said that unfortunately, Meaux’s designs did not place in the top four spots this year.

“But in the end, it was still really good, and I liked how [the dress] was made,” Sims said. “It felt really comfortable, and I really appreciated how it looked.”

As a first-time participant in the fashion show, Sims said she decided to be a model to expand her horizons.

“I just wanted to do something new,” Sims said. “It felt fun. And to dress up, or to have someone dress me up, when I don’t even know what I’m going to be dressing up as, is really interesting to me, and it just makes me excited. I like the unknown.”

Although she said the fashion show went well, Sims said some confusion backstage made the process more chaotic.

“We had Act I, and we were all trying to get ready, moving around,” Sims said. “We had to keep our volume down because you could hear us from the stage.”

Sims said Act II was similarly chaotic, with many models losing track of where they were supposed to be in line.

“But in the end, it did come out really well–surprisingly, for a bunch of high schoolers,” Sims said. “But then again, some of [the models] have been in this way longer than me.”

Now that her first experience as a model for the fashion show is over, Sims advises students who are interested in modeling in the future to be prepared for showtime. 

“Mostly, work on your walk, and work on how you’re going to look,” Sims said. “And there have been so many people who are like, ‘I don’t know my designer, I don’t know where they are,’ so just keep in contact with your designer at all times.”

Caption by Camilla Vandegrift. Photo by Isa Truan.

WINGING IT: Junior Jane McKenna walks across the stage of the MAC, modeling for junior designer Isla Poole. Poole’s design features layers of satin and draped pearls, along with McKenna’s favorite part of the look: the wings.

“The look itself was so striking to look at,” McKenna said. “The huge wings were incredible and really well done, but the smaller details like the hair and makeup just really bought it all together.”

McKenna found that the final design was connected to the theme while at the same time reflective of Poole’s personal style.

“I think she’s a very creative and artistic person, and she has a very distinct personal style that is really prominent in her design,” McKenna said. “ It’s whimsical and also kind of grungy, and there are so many little details that really show how much time and thought she put into the whole look.”

For her walk, McKenna focused on bringing the audience’s attention to the creativity of the design, making sure to dramatize her arm movement and emphasize the wings.

“I have no experience in modeling,” McKenna said. “It helps to pretend to be a lot more confident than you really are, also making sure that the audience has enough time to see the design by walking slow.”

Throughout the process, McKenna took inspiration from everyone’s varying interpretations of the theme.

“I really loved seeing all the different designers’ looks,” McKenna said. “I saw bits and pieces throughout the months but everything came together on Friday.”

Caption by Maggie Mass. Photo by Elizabeth Nation.

SETTING THE STAGE: Senior London Holtz, who served as a model, steps on the stage for her first walk of the night, wearing a shimmering outfit designed by junior Maddie O’Connor. This was Holtz’s second year taking part in the fashion show, and she enjoyed getting to do what she loves. 

“My experience with the fashion show these past two years has been amazing,” Holtz said.

Holtz also designed four of her own looks for the show. To continue pursuit of her love for fashion, Holtz plans on attending Parsons School of Design next year. Holtz said that modeling for her friends and designing her own outfits has been her favorite part about the fashion show.

“I love being able to model for my friends and bond over my love for fashion,” Holtz said. “That was what intrigued me to take part in the fashion show.”

Caption by Sienna Martens. Photo by Beatrix Lozach.

A DECADE AND COUNTING: For more than 10 years in a row, a group of producers along with designers and models has put together a themed fashion show. The 2025 theme—“Celestial Wilderness: Beyond the Horizon”—combined elements of space and nature. Junior directors TC Brosnan and Cate Bradley and their fellow directors produced this year’s show, with performances on Saturday evening and on Sunday afternoon. 

As a director, Brosnan was responsible for organizing the entire event. The planning included determining the show order, selecting music for each designer and models, handling advertising and coordinating meetings. Compared to 2024, Brosnan said they had more designers and models this year, but it wasn’t a significant difference. 

When Brosnan was a sophomore, a friend suggested they interview to be a sophomore intern, and she applied, despite having never been a model or designer before. Directors join their sophomore year typically, and stay through senior year, so she has one show left to direct. 

“Funny enough I didn’t know much about the fashion show at the time and wasn’t particularly interested in it,” Brosnan said. “But now it’s become one of the most meaningful communities I’ve been a part of in high school and one of the weekends I look forward to most each year.” 

Brosnan said that when selecting interns, the leaders of the fashion show look for people who are creative, organized and suited for a leadership role. 

“Factors like aesthetics, social status, fashion sense or relevance have no impact on the selection process, which means that we end up with a truly diverse group of people,” she said. 

The team starts recruiting interns in late September, and then shortly after everybody begins on designer/model meetings.

“We try to give designers enough time to produce designs they’re proud of, while still being able to balance that with school, extracurriculars, work, etc.,” she said.

Caption by Priya Thoppil. Photo by Daniela Di-Capua.

ALIEN IN SPACE. Senior Cilley Phan poses in her design made by fellow senior Quinn Wiseman. Phan represented a black hole and the  other two models for the collection represented a red nebula and an astronaut that was discovering them.

“My outfit was very cool because the bottom was really flowy and drapey,” Phan said. “The top was very fitted and sturdy so it was a nice sort of contrast.”

She found the rehearsals fun and enjoyed being around a bunch of different people and appreciated the directors for keeping everything together.

“The show went really smoothly because of [the directors],” Phan said. “The fitting progress was also good. I’d just go over to Quinn’s house and watch movies while he’d work, and every hour he’d have me try it on again to see what he needed to tweak.”

Before the show, Phan and the other models for Wiseman had a sleepover to get ready and be together.

“My favorite part was hanging out with my friends backstage and in the dressing rooms,” Phan said.

She also felt that the audience helped the environment of the show and added to the moral of those on stage.

“The crowd was really supportive,” Phan said. “They cheered a ton for every single model and for every single designer, and I think it really lifted people’s spirits and helped them be not as nervous.”

Caption by Callen Romell. Photo by Daniela Di-Capua.

FABU-LACE FASHION: Sophomore Tony Altuna shows off the back of her outfit at the McCallum Fashion Show on Sunday, March 9. This show was the second of two, and both were a huge success for the model.

“I think [the show] went very good,” Altuna said. “Being around a lot of other creative people was really fun.”

Despite being a sophomore, this year’s shows were Altuna’s first year working with the fashion show. Since October, she has learned all about modeling and the fashion industry, and wants to continue next year.

“I don’t know if I’m gonna model but I definitely want to design,” Altuna said. “I don’t really sew much, but I could definitely learn.”

On Sunday, the show lasted from 2 p.m to about 4 p.m., including a 15-minute intermission between acts. During intermission, a short film was shown to the audience, showing rehearsals, designer meetings, interviews with directors, and more behind the scenes footage. Altuna liked how it showed the audience all the work put into creating a successful show, and how it showed off every person involved.

“It was really cool to get to see the designs as they were being made,” She said. “I would see the designers working on their outfits and just think about how creative they are.”

Altuna described her typical day-to-day style as simple, usually a plain T-shirt with jeans and Converse, and maybe a few accessories.

In the fashion show, however, Altuna dressed in a short, black dress with gray tights underneath.The focus of the outfit was on the white lace cape she wore.

She accessorised with a black headband and kept her rust-colored hair down.

“It put me outside of my comfort zone dressing-wise,” Altuna said. “It isn’t really something I would pick out on my own, but just because it’s not my personal style doesn’t mean it’s bad. My designer did an amazing job.”

Caption and photo by Harriet Zettner.

FUNKY BREWSTER: During the first fashion show on Saturday night, junior Lindsay Kolerich poses in her look, which was created by junior Charlie Brewster. Kolerich’s outfit contained a dress that Brewster made as well as a necklace and his katana. Brewster’s line was inspired by a fallen alien warrior empress, a storyline which immediately intrigued Kolerich. Brewster first approached Kolerich to ask her to model for him right before the practices started. 

“I was excited I thought it could be fun, and I knew Charlie was very innovative and creative,” Kolerich said.

Reflecting on the show as a whole, Kolerich’s favorite part of participating was getting to see all the different looks come together. She thought all of the looks were amazing but some that stood out to her were done by senior Reyn Linder and junior Kaylen [insert last name].

“I really liked Reyn’s because they were so well made and they were pieces you could wear out,” Kolerich said. “Kaylen’s was really cool because of the intricate design and all the handmade jewelry she incorporated.”

One challenge the designers faced was adjusting the outfits to make sure they fit each model. These adjustments often took place right before the models went on stage. 

“It made me feel like my designer was passionate about my comfort and the outfit being secure,” Kolerich said.

Kolerich said the first day of rehearsal was a very memorable experience.

“It was cool to see everyone’s creative ideas come together and how they interpreted the theme,” Kolerich said.

Already looking ahead to next year, Kolerich wants to return to the show, perhaps as a model again.

“I ended up having a lot of fun, and it was overall just a good experience,” she said.

Caption by Maya Tackett. Photo by Elizabeth Nation. 

NATURE’S TREASURE: Senior Sylvie Powell poses on the runway while sporting a look designed by senior Rita Hagerty. The outfit was completely hand-knit, and Hagerty even created her own pattern for the piece.

To tie into this year’s theme of “celestial wilderness,” Hagerty chose to embody dynamic forms that organically occur in nature throughout her collection. Powell’s look, along with four others, won Hagerty the first place title.

“I feel so, so honored to have been a part of her line,” Powell said. “And that I got to model the clothes that she put so much thought and effort into.”

While Powell’s experience at this year’s fashion show was one of a kind, it was not her first time participating. In fact, she has been modeling for the show since she was a sophomore.

“The fashion show has sort of just become a big part of high school for me,” Powell said. “I  just love seeing all of the creativity, and the community that it brings together is always so fun.”

The annual show becoming an integral part of Powell’s high school experience made saying goodbye all the more emotional.

“[My last show] was definitely bittersweet,” Powell said. “I’ve made so many great memories and gotten closer to so many people through the fashion show, which I’m so grateful for, but that made it really sad to know that it’s my last one.”

Caption by JoJo Barnard. Photo by Sophia Manos.

FINDING A WAY: Freshman Vaughn Shields models a look at the McCallum Fashion Show this past Sunday. Fashion designers and models have been working hard to create a show since October, and their diligence paid off. The theme of the show was “Celestial Wilderness: Beyond The Horizon,” and Shields’s look reflected that theme.

“I really liked my outfit,” Shields said. “It was really comfortable and I think it fit the theme well.”

As a freshman, this show was Shields’s first year in modeling, but he plans to continue as part of the show next year. The question is whether to continue as a model or try designing.

“I enjoyed modeling a ton,” He said. “But I also think that designing a few outfits could be really cool. I love art and creating things, so I think the fashion show could be a fun way to express that.”

Shields currently does art in Printmaking 1 and chose Sculpture 1 as his art class for next year.

Most models only planned to show one outfit, but for Sunday’s show, Shields had to quickly improvise in a second one due to another model not being able to make it.

“I didn’t really get a chance to try the outfit on so I had to figure it out in a few minutes,” Shields said. “I barely had any time between when I did my first outfit and when I went back out so I’m glad the other outfit was pretty simple.”

Shields’s second outfit featured a blue jacket with orange accents and black pants, along with an orange shirt underneath and a loose, white tie. As he walked on to the stage, he successfully posed and showed off the outfits design and the craftsmanship put into it.

“I’m in theater so I’d say I can improvise pretty well,” he said. “At least, I know the audience doesn’t know I’m not the original model so it’s not like its a big deal if I messed up some.”

Shields’s involvement in art, fashion, and theater at McCallum will only continue as he goes into sophomore year and he learns even more about the fine arts.

Caption and photo by Harriet Zettner.