The scene: Courtesans, chic chairs and student fashions made for a night of fun and frivolity during the Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising’s annual Debut Gala, featuring the work of advanced design students.

Kicking the evening off was a runway packed with 10 unique chairs designed collaboratively by FIDM textile-design students, fashion-design students and interior-design students. Sponsored by Cotton Inc., the annual “Chairing Styles” exhibition allowed each team of three students to create original textile prints, chair designs and a matching dress for a chair.

Reprising his role as master of ceremonies, FIDM alum designer Randolph Duke made a grand entrance, flanked by two models wearing two of his red-carpet-worthy dresses.

Adding to the sense of theatricality, this year FIDM’s advanced theater costume-design students created a whirlwind of color and sparkle with their “Moulin Rouge”–themed presentation. A chorus line of can-can dancers, a high-flying courtesan, three mustachioed gentlemen in tutus and a model wearing a corset bedecked with a spinning red windmill brought the dizzy glamour of director Baz Luhrmann’s classic film to life on the catwalk.

The 11 advanced fashion-design graduates presented collections that included menswear, contemporary and eveningwear. Andrea Roady showed sportswear inspired by Elizabethan fashion. Jonique Washington created chunky knits for men. Hideka Minami showed a collection of 1950s-inspired plaid outerwear with a twist; one-armed capes and a ruched tube dress were standouts. Richard Chan showed gowns that featured Eastern details and flower-inspired silhouettes.  —Erin Barajas

Photography by Volker Corell