Fashion shows

If you're looking for an excuse to get dressed up tonight, two fashion fundraisers will spotlight local designers.
The 15th annual Diva event, this year themed "The Adventures of SuperDivas," will feature original fashion from 30 local designers including Joy Teiken, whose glamorous dress line Joynoelle is known beyond the Twin Cities; Katherine Gerdes of "Project Runway" fame; and Jason Hammerberg, formerly of Kuhlman, who is now producing his own custom-tailored line as well as baby clothes. The show, at International Market Square, also will include emerging designers and promising students from the Minneapolis Community and Technical College.
But more than the runway show, Diva is always a rocking party, with cocktails, dinner, live auction, DJ and dancing into the wee hours. Perhaps because it's the most irreverent of the annual fundraisers, the crowd is sure to include a bevy of local trendsetters, stylists and fashion insiders. In other words: A formal ball gown is not required, but looking fabulous is expected.
Even if you don't have a ticket for the dinner ($100-$150), you can still get into the fashion show and after-party. Tickets at the door are $50, and proceeds support local AIDS service organizations. The show starts at 8 p.m. For more, visit www.divamn.org.
Across town at the Weisman Art Museum, the University of Minnesota's Lions Children's Hearing Center is hosting an evening of wine and cheese tasting with a fashion show featuring 10 local designers including Annalyse Clothing and the big-band sounds of the Andy Artz Society Orchestra. Tickets are $30, and proceeds will fund research on childhood deafness. The event runs from 7:30 to 10:30 p.m. — Allison Kaplan