It was perhaps the most exciting and original event in this year’s calendar for Adelaide, presented by the Greek Orthodox Community of SA, during the 11th “Odyssey” Festival, which opened its doors to the public on Friday 30 September and will conclude on Saturday 29 October.
The “Hellenic Colours” event was held on Sunday, October 2, at the Migration Museum of South Australia, where the young and talented dancers of GOCSA’s Dance Academy excitedly presented, for the first time in Adelaide, an entirely different fashion show.
Demonstrated by the young models on the specifically constructed long “catwalk”, along the terrace of the museum, the traditional costumes extravaganza featured over 45 colourful and luxurious Greek traditional costumes from different parts of Greece.
Guest presenter of the event Ms. Pam Andritsaki ran through the details and brief history for each costume and the attendees had the opportunity to see from close-up the luxurious clothes of other eras that reflect the specific characteristics of their regions of origin in Greece.
The show also featured traditional hand-made jewellery, which was produced around the same time and was viewed as a symbol of power, social and financial status.
According to the organisers, the aim of the show was to share and show everyone the various aspects and idiosyncrasies of each region and its people and showcase how everyday life influenced the design, the colour and the style of each of those traditional costumes.
“It certainly was an original fashion show full of tradition, colour and history which aimed to highlight the particular characteristics of each area of Greece,” said GOCSA’s president, Bill Gonis in an interview with Neos Kosmos.
“We are incredibly fortunate to live in one of the most ethnically diverse societies in the world today. Australia is a vibrant and multicultural country, the home for some of the world’s oldest cultures and its rich cultural diversity is one of our greatest strengths for the Greek culture to survive,” Gonis added.
The 45 fashion pieces exhibited, covered various Greek regions, particularly the areas of Pontus, Epiros, Makedonia, Thrace, Rumeli and Peloponnese, and the islands of Lemnos, Nisyros, Crete and Amorgos. The pieces exhibited were all either authentic costumes from Greece, exact replicas owned by the Dance Academy or that had been kindly donated to the dancers by various local Greek associations.
“Each region used different techniques and through the various designs it is apparent how everyday life influenced the fashion of that era,” said the president.
According to research data published by researcher Angela Hatzimichalis, the design and materials used for the manufacture of various costumes of the time, reflected both the age of the person who wore them and reflected their overall socio-economic status.
“Although the weather was not on our side on Sunday, the attendance and positive feedback from the guests was the biggest reward for all the young Greek children that proudly wore those masterpieces and paraded on the day,” said Mr. Gonis