Orianna Kurrus' darkly innovative fashions have graced the pages of our paper several times in the past few years, both as wearable art and as wacky yet stylish ready-to-wear. Her perverse sense of humor is revealed in pieces that fuse an ongoing fascination with dolls (from the Raggedy Ann variety to those freaky, porcelain eye-winkers) with modern gothic elements — think lace, velvet and Alice in Wonderland-style stripes. Oh, yeah, and long, trailing sleeves that require a measured amount of playful arm swinging for full effect. Her latest endeavor, Dancing Dolls, is a multimedia runway show with clothing designs and artwork by Kurrus and Yasmin Fouad, as well as bellydancing models with painted bodices, live music by the Ken Spivey Band, Jun, Lorna Bracewell, Back To Now, Side B and Lexi Pierson, and stand-up by local comic Jennifer Hensleigh. A portion of proceeds raised at the show go to Community Action Stops Abuse (CASA). Fri., Oct. 27, 8 p.m., Sacred Grounds Coffee Shop, 4819 E. Busch Blvd., Tampa, free admission, 813-983-0837, www.oriannastudios.com.
This article appears in Oct 25-31, 2006.
