Ke Alaka'i - Culture Night 2019

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THE LEADER

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Meanings behind the movements

KE A LA KA I

Club leaders say annual event honors culture and tradition, increases understanding, raises awareness and unifies students

BY NOAH SHOAF Despite differences in language, years of traditions and geographical separation, BYU–Hawaii’s Culture Night 2019 broke those boundaries, according to BYUH ohana members, as 27 clubs used music, dance and storytelling to celebrate and educate. Culture Night 2019 was on Friday, March 22 and Saturday, March 23 in the Cannon Activities Center.

Throughout the two-night event, clubs told stories of war, love and individuality.

From Hong Kong’s “Lion Dance,” to Mongolia’s Genghis Khan celebration, performers said their performances were more than a way to entertain.

To members of New Zealand Club, Culture Night was a way to stand against any form of terrorism and racism, said Elijah Wanoa, a senior from New Zealand majoring in political science. Like New Zealand, Australia dedicated its performance to the victims and their families of the massacre at two Christchurch mosques on March 15.

When the Latin American Club closed its set, the members gathered wearing shirts coordinating with the colors of the Venezuelan flag.

Saba Ramirez, a senior from Ecuador majoring in communications said, “People are asking about what is happening... We wanted to make it more obvious to people on what is happening over there. People are actually suffering.”

Like the clubs who used their stage time to raise awareness, the Hawaii and New Zealand Clubs also chose to focus their performances on the 100th anniversary of the Laie Hawaii Temple because they said the temple blessed their ancestors and in turn is blessing them.

The notion that Culture Night was more than a celebration was evident with this year's changes, said Student Clubs Manager Fahren Niu, a junior from Laie majoring in political science. She said instead of having emcees, the BYUH Media Production Center staff compiled introduction videos where club leaders described the meaning of their performances. Niu added this a challenging task elevated the event with its highlights of the people behind the performances.

Some people behind the performances were Debora Putri Wijaya, a freshman from Nevada majoring in TESOL, and Secretary of the Cambodian Club Pattica San, a sophomore majoring in business management.

According to Wijaya, Culture Night was a way to overcome the disconnect that comes from being Indonesian but raised in America.

“When I first joined Indonesian Club last semester, I kind of felt weird because I didn’t grow up in Indonesia like everyone else. I don’t even know the language very well. But by being a part of Culture Night, I was able to spend more time with everyone. I felt like they didn’t care whether I knew their language or grew up in the same place as them.”

San said dancing in Culture Night was a way to represent his childhood growing up in an orphanage in Cambodia and being the dance teacher there.

From Kiribati, Kimberly Tetabwa Tokanang, a freshman majoring in political science, said Culture Night helped her cope with homesickness. In the Gamers Club, President Kristen Conrad, a senior majoring in English from Washington, said she wanted people to understand in the gamer’s culture, there is a place for everyone.•

China Club performed at Culture Night on Friday, March 22. Photo by Chad Hiseh.

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CULTURE NIGHT

RECAP

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KE A LA KA I

HAWAII

JAPAN

The light of the temple

Tradition and modern life-through dance

Members involved: 100

The Hawaii Club kicked off the 2019 Culture Night with Hawaii Club President, Alohilani Housman, a junior from Hilo, Hawaii, majoring in Hawaiian studies and elementary education, gave the opening prayer in the Hawaiian language.

The club’s performance was a tribute to the 100th anniversary of the Laie Hawaii Temple. Members of the Hawaii Club were dressed in white, symbolizing the purity and cleanliness of the temple.

One of its goals, said Housman, “ is to focus on light.” In the introduction video, Housman explained, “We hope to focus on how we can become lights to fulfill our potential.”

David Auna, a member of the Hawaii Club presidency and a sophomore from Hauula, Hawaii majoring in Hospitality and Tourism Management, said, “I am more confident and feel stronger in my faith as I live my culture sharing our scriptures through the way my ancestors recorded it, through hula.”

The Hawaii Club, made up of about 100 members, filled the stage and danced a hula in remembrance and celebration to their ancestors, Auna said. The all-white costumes depicted the unity of the club.

Auna continued, “As a club, we wanted to portray how we love and remember those who came before us. We truly do reap the benefits of all they did and the sacrifices they made. We dressed the way we did to show that the temple is our ultimate goal in this life, and we strive to follow the examples of our ancestors who made many sacrifices in order to receive the blessings of the temple.” •

Members involved: 50

Japan Club members took the stage with a “Super Smash Bros” introduction.

They performed a mixture of traditional and modern dance. The women of the Japanese Club performed a special dance traditionally done as a memorial for the dead. They used a traditional Japanese fan, known as a “sensu.”

The dances were choreographed by Momoko Muramoto, a sophomore from Japan studying social work.

Muramoto said, “Our goal was to show the audience what kind of dances, both traditional and modern, that we do back in Japan.” She said she used this as her inspiration in preparing the choreography for the performance.

The performance, said Muramoto, was a great opportunity for all of the members of the club to become more unified and better fulfill the club’s mission statement, “... to build unique relationships that would not only last here, but even in the future.”

Though Muramoto choreographed the dances, she said, “The club made many decisions as a group, and this really brought us closer to one another. We were able to work together, have fun, and show true Japanese culture through dance.” •

AFRO CLUB United in differences

Members involved: 32

The Afro World Club represented those of African descent and wanted to unify the differences of those who have grown up in different places around the world, said club leaders, but are still connected at their roots.

Toni Shipp, Afro World Club vice president and a sophomore majoring in communications from California, shared, “The dance is just going to showcase the whole variety of dances that have come up from around the world. But what’s cool is there’s a lot of similarities between them because of our roots.”

They danced a total of 18 different dances including Latin, the “Bachata” from the Dominican Republic, and salsa. Jackie Morris, Afro World Club president and a junior from Virginia majoring in social work, said audience members asked the club why they danced so many varieties of dance if their club is centered around African culture.

She explained with excitement, “That’s the whole point. We wanted to portray all of the different cultures that are experienced and lived by those whose roots come from Africa.

Africans are not only found in Africa. That’s the point we were trying to get across.”

The members of the Afro World Club were united through their matching T-shirts, but each person showed their uniqueness by wearing different accessories representing the various regions where African culture is found.

Morris added, “The shirts featured the continent of Africa, which was made up of little graphics that represented African culture.

You’ll see pictures of head wraps, little African trinkets, animals, and much more.” • WI NT ER 2 0 1 9

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CHINA Ancient to modern

AOTEAROA A piece of Laie

Members involved: About 50

Members involved: 130-150

China Club performed a mixture of ancient, traditional and modern dances.

According to Luo Xi Lin, a freshman studying TESOL from China, “China is full of rich culture, but many people only think of the sights and the food when they think of China.

We wanted to show them how dancing is such a big part of the culture in China.”

The China Club danced four dances and each showcased a different time period in Chinese culture. The club chose to include a modern dance along with the traditional dances in order to show that China has rapidly progressed and grown into a modern country.

The China Club opted for costumes that were simple in both color and design, said Lin. They did this in order to showcase the props that they were using.

“For the ribbon dance, however, it looks much prettier with a fancy costume. We used ancient designs for our costumes and wore white so that the red ribbon would pop more.”

As the dancers finished their final number, they gathered together in a special formation. Lin said, “If the audience doesn’t speak Chinese, they would never know, but our final formation, or ending pose, was a Chinese character. It was the first character of the word ‘China.’” •

The Aotearoa Club filled the Cannon Activities Center with their voices as more than 130 people chanted and sang original music.

They focused on the traditional elements of Maori culture and language. Elijah Wanoa, a senior from New Zealand majoring in political science and hospitality and tourism management, explained, “The traditional things we incorporated were the use of poi for the women, the haka, and the different actions like the wiri.”

The original music, composed by Aotearoa Club President Chesser Cowan, a sophomore from New Zealand majoring in intercultural peacebuilding, and other students from New Zealand combined several different elements of Maori culture. Cowan shared, “The first number was a mashup of haka, waiata, poi. There were all these different fields. There were all these different aspects of performances.”

Focusing its performance on the 100th anniversary of the Laie Hawaii Temple, Cowan explained they drew inspiration from their ancestors who came through Laie. “It brought me back to not only our Maori ancestors, but our other Polynesian ancestors came through Laie. It had the only temple outside of the [mainland].

“They were coming to this place of refuge, spiritually and physically, and then they went back. A piece of Laie went with them, but a piece of them still stayed. That’s what I wanted to portray in that song. We are that part of Laie for our ancestors. We have come to call this place our new home, and when we go back home, Laie comes with us.” •

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HONG KONG Sharing traditions

Members involved: 50

The Hong Kong Club used its performance to teach its traditions to new performers. Johnson Yu, a senior from Hong Kong majoring in exercise and sport science, explained, “The lion dance was kind of different. Normally we have one lion, but this year we had two lions.The original [lion dancers] wanted to teach the new guys how to do the lion dance.We had two pairs of people. I asked Dr. Phung to get one more so they can perform at the same time.This way the new guys could learn from the old guys. It was like passing the tradition to the new people.”

The club began by members flipping red and white cards, whichYu explained, “Was counting down from 10 to one. It was my culture and my language.”

They also shared the traditions they have in Hong Kong.Yu said, “We had the bun tower. Every year around March or April we have a bun festival one hour away from Hong Kong.The bun satisfies the gods.They can feed the gods, so they're happy and they won’t bother the people. People climb to the top because they believe who ever gets to the top first will get peace for the whole year.

“Everything we performed this year was tradition.We have traditional dances, but we don’t have people who know how to do it.The dragon, lion, and the bun tower are local to Hong Kong. At the end, I just wanted them to know this was the traditions of Hong Kong.” •

MELANESIA Unity in individuality

Members involved: 18

Representing Vanuatu, Solomon Islands, Papua New Guinea, and Caledonia, the Melanesian Club incorporated elements from each country into their dance. Nia Lani, a sophomore from Vanuatu majoring in information technology, explained, “Each one of [our dances] was unique because they were all from different countries .… We wanted to make sure we had a taste of each of the island countries.”

Lani shared how the Vanuatu dance “symbolizes no matter which of the four countries we come from, we are all one.”

The Solomon Islands dance represented the love between couples, the Papua New Guinea dance was all about the energy it takes to dance with them, and the Caledonia dance featured its only member from the country.

“Those who have partners danced with their partners, but those who did not have partners wore flags. Those who had partners wore their leaves,” described Lani. “For the shirts, we let everyone choose what color they wanted to wear. We didn’t say PNG’s wear this or Vanuatu wear this. Our mission statement for the club is building unity, and I feel like if we separated the colors to the individual islands, it’s [separation]. We let people choose what made them feel comfortable. At the end, that is all that matters.” •

MONGOLIA Honoring the past

Members involved: 42

Mongolia Club members displayed pride in their country with a video showing the culture of Mongolia and how it has changed over the years, which was played before their performance. The video then focused on the Church in Mongolia, featuring President John Tanner and his wife, Susan Tanner, Church leaders, and missionaries in Mongolia.

The performance featured Genghis Khan and his wife throughout. Narantsatsral Ganzorigt, Mongolia Club vice president, explained during the intro video, “In our dance, you will see Genghis Khan with his wife and others honoring him to the dance.

Once he conquered half of the world. After every victory he celebrated with his family and soldiers with an event known as Naadam.

“Naadam is one of the Mongolian traditional holidays, which is competitions of archery, wrestling, and horseback riding.

What we are trying to do now is bring Genghis Khan’s time to this stage by sharing this dance with you.”

During the performance, six women danced with five bowls balanced on top of their heads, removing and replacing them as they moved around the floor. •

TAHITI Peace and freedom

Members involved: 80

According to Day-J Pendant, a sophomore from Tahiti majoring in Pacific Island studies and president of the Tahiti Club, “The first dance was the haka.The main god was summoning all the elements because he was looking for someone to take care of specific items. He asked the elements to talk about it and to find something.The second dance, which is called otea, is a fast dance.We were fighting with each other to find a garden.

Then the god was in the middle of the circle and he was telling them to stop.This wasn’t what he wanted them to do.Then he explained and they decided to have peace and to reconcile.

“The slow dance, the aparima, was representing the peace and the freedom the peace brought. In these dances they are talking about the manu, which is the bird, which in Tahiti is a symbol of peace and freedom.To celebrate our reconciliation, the last dance, the pa’o’a, is where we were celebrating together by dancing and singing together.

“The night of the performance, people in Tahiti watching the performance said it was really good.They were like, ‘You were awesome because you were beautiful, you were smiling, and everyone was having fun.’ The Tahitians here say that as well.They were really proud of it, and they were really happy with it.” •

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INDONESIA

GAMERS

FIJI

Mainland connections

A place for everyone

Small and simple

Members involved: 35

Members involved: 13

Members involved: 97

Indonesia’s national motto, “Bhinneka Tunggal Ika,” which means unity in diversity, was the motivation behind the six Culture Night dances by club members from the country made up of 17,000 islands and 655 languages, according to its introduction video.

Debora Putri Wijaya, a freshman from Nevada majoring in TESOL, said, “We chose to represent six of the different Indonesian islands to give the school an idea of how different each culture is, but at the same, show how similar each is as well. Each island may be different and have different cultural aspects, but in the end, we are all one.”

Wijaya continued,“When I first joined the Indonesian Club last semester, I kind of felt weird because I didn’t grow up in Indonesia like everyone else, and I don’t even know the language very well. But by being a part of Culture Night, I was able to spend more time with everyone, and I felt like they didn’t care whether I knew their language or grew up in the same place as them.

“Even though I grew up in a completely different culture than the majority of the club, being with them just felt right. Back home, my family was the only Indonesian family in my stake, so I never really interacted with other Indonesians.

Because of Culture Night, I feel I can be a new version of myself, a version that has exposure to what makes me different from everyone back home and that has connected to others who share the same history as I do.” •

Jordan Donaldson, a senior from Arizona majoring in communications, said his favorite part of the Gamers Club performance was the gamers' new-found self-awareness.

“They know they aren’t good at dancing particularly, but they still wanted to show off what they’re all about, which is having fun together.The guy dressed up as Mario just did the same dance move over and over again, which I feel embodies Mario as a character, simple and fun.”

In the introduction video before its performance, Club President Kristen Conrad, a senior majoring in English from Washington, said, “I think the most important thing I wish for people to understand about our culture is there is a place for everyone.Whether you come with people to play with or you come alone, we just want to make sure everyone knows there’s a place for them.”

Brett Douglas, a senior from Maryland majoring in social work and the vice president of the club, explained, “Through the song, we hoped to connect both old and new, and just like the song we hoped experienced and non-experienced members can create bonds through it. Not to prove stereotypes, but the majority of Gamers Club cannot dance.” •

Fiji took the stage at Culture Night with dances contrasting the roles men and women have in the country made up of 333 islands.

Errol Qaqa, the Fiji Club vice president, said in the introduction video during Culture Night that the females danced the “meke iri,” or the “fan dance,” which represents the femininity of the Fijian culture and their responsibility as matriarchs in the home.

He added the males danced a “vakamalolo,” which shows the fierceness and boldness of Fijian warriors.

As Fiji Club members danced the “meke iri” and “vakamalolo,” the cheers of the crowd filled the CAC. Ron Chand, a senior from Fiji majoring in accounting and marketing, said, “Because of the love and service-oriented attitude most Fijians have, they are very well known to the students and facilities.Thus receiving such an awesome welcome from the crowd.”

He added it was rewarding seeing his people perform. “People of Fiji come from humble backgrounds.We are a small nation filled with great dreams.The Culture Night was one way we brought those dreams to life and showed the world our uniqueness.”

“You know how they say, ‘By small and simple things, great things come to pass.’ Fiji is a small and simple island that has the heart to make great things come to pass,” shared Chand. •

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TAIWAN

TONGA

LATIN AMERICA

Cultural similarities

Overcoming organizational obstacles Members involved: 105

We are one

Members involved: 35

Genie Chiao, the Taiwan Club president, in Taiwan’s introduction video, said she wanted Taiwan’s performance to show why people should study cultural history. “Our culture defines who we are. If we forget our own culture, we will lose our identity because this culture is just like our parents that take care of us since we are little.”

The theme of preserving culture was a component of Taiwan’s performance. It began by acting out a classroom where the teacher was lecturing on the indigenous people, the Sediq.

As the performance progressed, the club members acted out the Sediq fighting as a village was invaded by a group from another country.

Those who died in the battle then crossed a rainbow bridge, which symbolizes passing to the next life and being reunited with ancestors.

Trish Cahigas Mora, a freshman from Singapore majoring in elementary education, said she related to Taiwan's classroom scene even though she is from Singapore.

“The classroom scene studying about the aboriginals was something I could relate too.The school culture was the same as Singapore. It felt like I was back in school.”

She added Culture Night is a way to learn how cultures are intermixed, and people do not have to be exclusively associated with a culture to connect with it. •

Tonga Club Vice President Penisimani Lautuselu Taumoepeau said in the introduction video played at Culture Night, “We tend to forget about who we came from and then who we are so dancing brings a sense of responsibility, covenant, and reminds you of who you are and what you're obligated to.”

He also said since Tongans are descendants of voyagers, which was evident in their performance, specifically with “Me’etu’upaki,” which is a prayer to the gods, and “Milolua,” which is a depiction of a covenant between the king and god.

Tiera Tu’ikolovatu, the Tonga Club president and a senior from California majoring in education, said, “We are the Island Kingdom, the last monarchy there, and so it's important to be able to share that with the future and to go out into the world and show people who we are as Tongans.”

Before Tonga performed, there was trouble starting the club’s music track. Although Tu’ikolovatu said it was stressful and confusing, the fact she was not planning to be the president of Tonga Club this semester she said was more of a challenge than the musical difficulties.

“I got a phone call that said if we don’t have a name submitted by noon, there will be no Tonga Club. I was like you are kidding. I am not even a Tongan from Tonga. I am just a Tongan from America. I don’t even speak Tongan, but I decided to take the responsibility of leading the club.”

She said it was a learning process organizing Culture Night, but due to the help of the students in the club, her stress was reduced. •

Latin America Club members went back to their roots, starting their performance by displaying a flag that was half Portugal and half Spain, as a narrator explained the history of colonization in Latin America. According to Katja Scheel Lopez, a senior majoring in hospitality and tourism management from Guatemala and Latin Club choreographer, “With all the immigration issues, Latins are seen as something bad right now in the U.S.We wanted to show we are not that different… At the end, we are one. Latins, Americans, Asians, and Polynesians are all one.”

Following several traditional Latin dances, the performers ended dancing and waving flags of various Latin American countries to “We Are One”

by Pitbull.They were wearing shirts designed to match the colors of the Venezuelan flag and held up a banner that said, ‘Dedicated to Venezuela.’

Lopez explained, “With everything that has been happening… I thought, ‘How can we help?’

It’s been bringing awareness. I noticed… no one really knew what was going on.They didn’t even know where Venezuela was. Maybe if we dedicated our performance in Culture Night, people would be more aware.”

Of the 35 performers for the club, “There are very few Latinos here,” explained Saba Ramirez, a senior majoring in communications from Ecuador and Latin Club vice president.

“There were maybe three or four Latinos in the performance.They were from Fiji,Tonga,Taiwan, Mexico, the Philippines, and many Americans.” •

Members involved: 26

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BALLROOM

THAILAND

Members involved: 21

Doing hard things

Members involved: 32

Beauty, strength, and power

Just more than 20 people made up Australia Club’s performance, but its numbers did not keep club members from having a big impact. During its performance, the club called for a minute of silence, in remembrance of the victims and families of the recent Christchurch, New Zealand shootings.

According to Elijah Lemusuifeauali’i, a sophomore majoring in Pacific Island studies from Australia, “I think it really sent a message.

The fact we wanted to remember those who had been affected by that event, but as well as a sense of Australia is here. If you looked at our performance, we weren’t a big number like Samoa, or any of our Polynesian cousins. I think it speaks volumes that we were able to do that.”

Mahonri Eteru, an undecided freshman from Australia, said, “It’s not just the noise. It’s not just the dance, the here and now. It’s about what happened, what will happen and who was affected by it. It’s seeing the bigger picture.”

The club’s performance brought to light the culture of the Torres Strait Islanders, Australia’s lesser-known indigenous population.

Eteru, a Torres Strait islander, said, “Through our dancing and singing, we tell about history, the weather, the land, and the people. I think no one really knows about our people. It’s a hidden culture. A lot of people don’t recognize Australia is the oldest culture in the world.

There’s a lot of things people don’t know. This performance was to showcase something not known or understood across the world.” •w

The Ballroom Club took the floor and performed five dances, each representing a different decade. It began with a waltz from the 1700s to “Hushabye Mountain,” followed by a tango from the 1890s to “Phantom of the Opera,” after which they performed a swing dance from the 1920s to “Ain’t Got No Home.”

Next came a cha cha from the 1950s to “Let’s Get Loud.” Its final dance was a hustle from the 1970s featuring “Dancing Queen.”

Jolene White, a junior from Maryland majoring in intercultural peacebuilding and president of Ballroom Club, said, “We wanted to do dancing through the decades because last year we did dancing through the cultures.

My presidency and I decided we wanted to do songs from each of those decades… The dances were a little more difficult to learn this year than in previous years. I really liked the collective energy. When you work so hard to put something like that on stage, the energy and adrenaline that goes through you was my favorite part.

“For the swing song we did, I had five of the couples do lifts, which is not something that we’ve done in the past. Usually we have one couple do lifts who we know are good at lifts. I wanted to help the students feel like they can do hard things. I noticed a lot of positive response from my club members who said this semester was so good, and it felt like a family.” •

Thailand brought an energy that Kris Krisanalome, a junior from Thailand majoring in music performance, said was different from anything club members experienced during their practices. “It’s totally different in practice.

It’s different because the room is smaller, but the actual stage is really big. We had more energy during the actual performance, with the lights, the crowd, and the intro videos. It gave us chills and we felt more powerful during the performance.”

Explaining the inspirations and meanings behind the performance, Krisanalome explained, “We used blindfolded boxing. It’s actually a thing in Thailand. When we have fairs, like a state fair, each event would have the same boxing with blindfolds to make it funny and entertaining.

“The [costumes were] related to architecture and Thai patterns they put into the fabric. It has their values in it, reminding us who we are, and values of beauty and strength.

It represents strength and power. If you noticed the crown one of the performers wore, it had a kind of flame representing fire to represent strength and power.”

He continued, “The dances are from four different parts of the country. In Thailand, we have the North and the Northeast, which are different. They have different dialects. We mixed them together with the Center and the South… One song was the theme of the performance where the female performers come and perform as a group, and then they switch with the couples or another group.” •

AUSTRALIA More than noise

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Members involved:18

HIP-HOP Bridging boundaries through dance

SINGAPORE/MALAYSIA Live it or lose it

INDIA Dance, Song, & Drama

Members involved: 30

Members involved: about 45

Members involved: 21

The Hip-hop Club came on stage with lots of energy and excitement. Its mission statement, shared in the opening video, is “to learn how to dance hip-hop, gain confidence, and make friends that cross intercultural boundaries.” Hip-hop Club does not represent a geographical area but rather a piece of American culture that has since spread to many other cultures.

James Constantino, president of Hiphop Club, said about hip-hop, “It’s helped out a lot of other people just to become more comfortable with themselves and grow closer to each other.”

The club members choreographed and performed a total of five dances. Halston Wood, a senior from Idaho studying TESOL and member of the club, said, “We had a few simple steps in preparation. We would first learn the dance, then perfect it, add formations and finally polish it off.”

Wood added, “Some of our favorite moments as a club were in the crunch time moments leading up to the big performance.

Even though we are all so different, we came together so much during those times and you could just feel the unity we had as a club. It was awesome.” •

The Singapore/Malaysia Club performed traditional songs and dances. Club President Sharon YinFong Yeap said in its opening video, “It’s important for us to live our culture because you either live it or you lose it.”

Its first performance was a song called “Sabak Pulai” meaning, “we cry for them to come back to us,” according to club member and choreographer Rizal A Takin. “The song was dedicated to all those who may have lost someone,” he said. The audience swayed to the soft tune and held up lit cellphones.

The following dance was known as “The Dance of the Death.” The dance represented a war, and props such as shields and swords were used to depict the battle. Those dressed in yellow represented the warriors while those in red represented the enemy. Towards the end of the dance, one performer was hoisted on top of the bamboo stick and was twirled around by other dancers on the ground.

“This was the most difficult and technical part of the dance. The bamboo stick was slightly bent and the dancer on top had to be doing specific moves, so it had to be just right.

This part is so vital to the dance because it represents the victory of the head warrior and the respect of the other warriors towards him,” said Takin.

With just two hours per week to prepare, the Singapore/Malaysia Club leaders said they worked hard to make the most of the time they had. Takin shared, “We inevitably faced challenges and rough spots throughout our journey. It was very stressful sometimes.

However, we grew more unified as a club and ended up accomplishing our desired result.” •

Vaishali Kilaparthi, India Club president, shared the club’s desire to share the true culture of India through its performance. “We really wanted the audience to be able to see and feel what the culture of India is all about,” said Kilaparthi.

Kilaparthi explained, “Our original plan was just to perform a few Indian Bollywood dances, after all, that is what everyone is familiar with when it comes to Indian culture. After thinking about it more, we concluded that India is more about drama, and the songs and dances are really there to support the drama and storylines.”

Vidya Irene Tamang, a member of the club, choreographed the dances performed by the India Club.Tamang had the idea to add the storyline within the dances, and she created the narration performed by the club.Within the narration of a love story, the club performed different dances and songs.

According to Kilaparthi, “Culture Night was one of the best events so far that we’ve been a part of as the India Club. It was so much fun, and we really enjoyed each practice session leading up to it.We grew closer to one another, worked to overcome challenges, and it really helped all the members of our club grow good relationships with one another.” •

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PHILIPPINES

COOK ISLANDS

The friendly Filipinos

Friendliness and the moon Members involved: 105

Members involved: 13

The Philippines Club showcased the Filipino flag in its costumes. Club members were dressed in the flag’s colors: red, blue and gold.

According to Mark Lois Eyo, president of the Philippines Club, “Red represents courage and royalty, blue represents peace, and gold represents something of value.We wanted to incorporate and showcase these colors because they show what we stand for.”

The club had its costumes made in the Philippines and shipped to Laie.

Eyo shared, “The Monday leading up to Culture Night, the costumes hadn’t even left the country yet.They shipped them out Tuesday, and they arrived Friday before the performance.We still have no idea how it happened, but it was our miracle.”

Eyo concluded, “Our finale was one of our favorite parts,” when the performers gathered together and went crazy. “We wanted to portray that the Filipinos just want to be everyone’s friend.We are fun people to be with.We wanted the audience to see that the people of the Philippines are happy and want to be there to help out everyone in times of need.” •

Krysten Tuufuli, a junior from the Cook Islands majoring in art, said although there are less than 10 students who came to BYUH from the Cook Islands, they still had a strong showing at Culture Night, due to their friendly culture.

“Us Cook Islanders like to make friends with a lot of people.There is something about the Polynesian cultures.We are all connected in one way. Some of us performed for Fiji and Tonga.

I performed for China, and a Chinese girl was performing for us.”

Tuufuli said this was her fifth Culture Night performing for the Cook Islands. She said it was one of the best years because they were organized and music technical difficulties did not faze them.

During the introduction video,Vice President of Cook Islands Club Gina Napa, described the club’s performance. She said the song “Arapo,” is about the moon because Cook Islanders used the moon to plant or farm and for catching certain types of seafood.

“We wanted to represent the Cook Islands as a small nation but shining brightly just like the moon within Hawaii.” She said its slow performance called “the Kapa Rima,” is a representation of women and how they can be the light within our community.” •

Secretary of Cambodia Club Pattica San, a sophomore majoring in business management from Cambodia, said dancing at Culture Night was a dream come true because dance has been how he managed hard life situations.

“Culture Night was a privilege for me to express myself through dance. In Cambodia, I was a dance teacher in the orphanage.We performed for the tourists and guests who came to the orphanage. It is great to come back to dance for Culture Night.”

Although San said he does not like to dwell on the past, he added, “It is hard to live your dream because you have no parents to support you and the orphanage is too poor to send you to do something you want.”

Despite those hardships, San said he was blessed when he came to BYU–Hawaii and he was hired at the Polynesian Cultural Center after showing the employer a Cambodian dance. Now being able to share the dance that provided him with opportunity, according to San, is a great privilege.

“One of the purpose why we created Cambodia chapter in BYUH [is] we want our voice to be heard because we are the minority of the minority. Sometimes we feel the minority has little voice and no cares for us, so that is why we wanted to perform at Culture Night.” •

Members involved: 130

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CAMBODIA Coping by dancing

KIRIBATI Easing homesickness

KOREA Traditional to KPOP

Members involved: 36

Members involved: 39

Along with drawing from ancient ancestors, gods, the earth and the sea, performers from the Kiribati Club said they were motivated to put on a unique show at Culture Night because they missed home.

Kimberly Tetabwa Tokanang, a freshman majoring in political science from Kiribati, said she was grateful from being born in a unique country.

“I am deeply grateful for that opportunity and have to say that practicing and performing enables me to cope with homesickness, like any other student. I don’t feel small though, as Kiribati is known to be of small islands. I felt big.”

“Our unity and inclusiveness have made me prouder to be I-Kiribati (person from Kiribati).

Giving my all during the performance is one demonstration of my strong spirit and pride.

Performing reminded us of our unique culture and taught me, and the rest of the students of Kiribati, especially those who have never danced before that night, to unite and respect others.” •

Contrasting modern to ancient,Young-Ho Shin, the Korea Club vice president, said in the Korea Club introduction video club members were performing to KPOP songs (from Blackpink and BTS) and doing a traditional Korean dance.

“We wanted to show the different beauty in of the past and the present culture. I hope you can pay attention and enjoy the difference between the performances.You will see one common theme that there is beauty coming from unity.”

Creating solidarity by showing the different forms of dance, according to Nagyeom Jung, a senior from Korea majoring in communications, was a difficult undertaking due to a lack of performers. She said just a few of students participated in the performance because students are were busy.

She added, “School policy does not allow people who are part-time students or community participation. It is too bad that they want to join it, but they could not.”

Despite those observations, Jung said she loved performing KPOP songs to an audience that has not be exposed to many elements of Korean culture. •

SAMOA ‘Plan B’ Costumes

Members involved: 170

“Being a leader is not easy but teaches me a lot of great experiences,” said Afatasi Afualo, a senior from Samoa majoring in political science.

Afualo is the president of Samoa Club and led many of the chants as Samoa closed Culture Night.

He said he was involved with trying to fix the problem that occurred when their costumes did not arrive. “It was a tough journey preparing for Culture Night.This year our uniforms didn’t arrive, and we had to come up with a ‘Plan B.’ “Our presidency talked and decided to buy lava lavas from town. It ended up working well.We thought this performance was better than last year and the year before because our members were very dedicated and committed to participate.”

Leilani Tafili, vice president of Samoa Club, said in the introduction video they were performing four traditional Samoan dances.

One was the “fa’atau pati,” known as the Samoan slap dance. “It is performed by males only because it requires strength and stability. It was invented because there was an invasion of mosquitos to the islands where the men slapped off the mosquitos off of them when bitten.”

Tafili also discussed the sasa, or a group dance performed by the club. “It is performed in sitting and standing positions, and it requires energy and enthusiasm.” •

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From left to right: Orihah Tehahe, Hirini Wikaira, and Connor McCarthy perform the haka during the Aotearoa performance. Photos by Chad Hsieh 14

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Megan Gamil performs with the Cambodia Club during the second night of Culture Night.

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WE ARE ONE

Three clubs dedicate Culture Night performances to victims of recent tragedies to bring awareness to world issues

BY HAELEY VAN DER WERF

Women of the Aotearoa Club dance with poi balls during Culture Night. Photo by Ho Yin Li 16

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Hundreds of Culture Night audience

members were quiet when the Australia Club dedicated a moment of silence to the families and victims of the massacre at two Christchurch mosques that happened on March 15. The same audience cheered as the Latin America Club displayed a banner showing its support of the Venezuelan people. Australia, along with the Aotearoa Club, dedicated their Culture Night performances to the Christchurch victims, and the Latin America Club dedicated it's performance to those suffering from the ongoing political turmoil in Venezuela.

"As the New Zealand Chapter, we had a responsibility to dedicate...those people who had lost their lives."

The Christchurch mosque shootings

Zealander, it doesn’t matter who you are or where you're from, you should feel safe. That's what we try to create as an environment in our own chapter. If you come and join us, you will feel safe and included.”

Chesser Cowan, an intercultural peacebuilding sophomore from New Zealand, further explained, “We wanted to show that family comes first regardless of your skin color or culture. Growing up you treated everyone the same regardless ... Sure, you get the occasional racial slur, but to do something like that really shocked our whole country.

“For the club, we wanted [to] show them that’s how we show our manaaki, which means care or love. We wanted them to know we actually care even though we’re not there.

It’s how we are going to portray our message.

A lot of people have been dedicating stuff to them. This is our message.”

Mahonri Eteru, an undeclared freshman from Australia, said they decided to dedicate the club’s performance to New Zealand because “Australia and New Zealand have been close throughout the years. We are like brothers and sisters. We wanted to pay our tribute and respect to them. When it happened, we decided we would do [our dance] for them. It wasn’t until the night of the performances when we came up with the idea for the minute of silence.

According to CNN, “At least 50 people were killed and 50 wounded, in a hate-filled terror attack targeting two mosques in the New Zealand city of Christchurch.” An Australian gunman targeted the Al Noor Mosque and the Linwood Mosque in central Christchurch during Friday, March 15 noon prayers.

Responding to the terrorist attacks, Elijah Wanoa, a political science senior from New Zealand, explained the responsibility they felt as New Zealanders to show support to their country after the shootings.

“As the New Zealand Club, we had a responsibility to dedicate ... to those people who had lost their lives. It’s our way of giving back because we can’t do much here in Hawaii.

It shows them we love them for who they are and shows solidarity with our government and the people of New Zealand.”

An important part of being from New Zealand, Wanoa explained, is feeling safe.

“We’re very proud of the fact we feel safe in New Zealand. Those things don’t happen to us at all. For that to happen to us was very shocking and unprecedented.

“We will stand against any form of terrorism, racism or whatever it is. As a New

Tai Tonumaipea performs with Australia Club.

Photo by Ho Yin Li

“We just wanted to show we are all one at the end of the day. We have different cultures. We represent Australia, New Zealand, Tonga or whatever we are. But at the end of the day we are one people. We are connected.

Especially New Zealand because they're right next door to us.”

Elijah Lemusuifeauali’i, a Pacific Island studies sophomore from Australia, said, “One thing I think people should understand is a lot of Polynesians who live in Australia now, their families migrated over from New Zealand to Australia. I wanted to highlight that because New Zealand is the place where our families started. A lot of our families still live in New Zealand. With the close relationship between Australia and New Zealand, we just wanted to show our respect to them.”

Eteru said the moment of silence was eye opening. “It was different. It was a good opportunity for them … to sit and think about what happened in New Zealand - to see the bigger picture. It’s more than just noise, stomping and standing around. It’s about connecting and bridging the gap between what was, what is and what will happen. That silence helped me to just be in the moment … and seeing the bigger picture. I think we were able to open up some eyes.”

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Above: The Latin America Club members raise flags of Latin American countries at the end of its performance. Below: The club raised a banner to raise awareness and show support for those suffering in Venezuela. Photos by Ho Yin Li and Haeley van der Werf

The crisis in Venezuela According to BBC News, “Growing discontent in Venezuela, fueled by hyperinflation, power cuts and food and medicine shortages, has led to a political crisis.

Opposition leader Juan Guaidó has declared himself interim president following large protests, [inspiring] opponents of current socialist President Nicolás Maduro.”

As “We Are One” by Pitbull played over the speakers, the Latin America Club gathered wearing shirts coordinating with the colors of the Venezuelan flag. Two club members stood up on chairs and revealed a banner that said, “Dedicated to Venezuela.”

Katja Scheel Lopez, a hospitality and tourism management senior from Guatemala, explained, “Since we started this semester, we have been keeping up with the news on what’s going on in Venezuela. I have a lot of friends from Venezuela. I actually have a friend who is a refugee there right now with her family.

With everything that has been happening … I thought, ‘How can we help?’”

The club’s main goal, explained Saba Ramirez, a communications senior from Ecuador, was to raise awareness. “The truth is we wanted to make it more obvious to people what is happening over there. People are actually suffering.”

According to Ramirez, countries from Central America, South America and the United States are trying to donate food and 18

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other supplies, but President Nicolás Maduro burns everything.

Ramirez said, “They are not receiving any donations right now. People are really dying. Two million Venezuelans have left their homes in just one year. They don’t have anything to eat. It’s bad. They have been like that for more than five years but now it’s worse … Even though we are far away, we are Latinos. We try to support our own culture of Latin America. When you support someone, you feel stronger and have hope to fight. For me, this was dedicated to our family.”

Both women said the video of the club’s performance has reached people from Venezuela who have expressed gratitude for their support even though they are so far away.

At BYU–Hawaii, Ramirez said people want to know more about what is happening. “On

Monday after the performance, the people who participated in Latin America Club came to me and told me their teachers said, ‘I saw you performing. We saw you guys dedicated it to Venezuela. So what is happening in Venezuela?’

They didn’t actually know the background of it.”

Scheel said she thinks it is important for everyone to know what is happening because it is an international issue. “There is an opposition in Venezuela right now, and many countries are supporting the leader of the opposition. The U.S. sees [Juan Guaidó] as the president right now. Even though he isn’t the legitimate president, they see him as the president.”

She said they decided to make a banner because, “It gives them hope and makes them feel like they are not alone. There are actually people who care … to have a banner shows we put work into it and we thought about it.

Even the shirts all represent the Venezuelan flag colors. It was representing them. It was for them.”

Their inspiration, Ramirez shared, came from a concert put on by Latinos in support of the Venezuelans. Ramirez said, “We kept looking at videos of what is happening in Venezuela and the support. Latinos made a huge concert for them. After we watched that they were screaming, ‘We need help. We need help.’

“We can support them from far away.

They can receive the message that we are with them. We can do something right now just by doing something for them. The song ‘We Are One’ was a big deal for us. We are one by putting our flags together and doing that song and dance. It shows we are with them. We just made the Venezuela flag bigger to say, ‘This is for you.’” •

Ian Logoitino Seiuli dances during the Samoa Club performance. Photo by Chad Hsieh

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Plumbers and Princesses Audience members say Gamers Club performance was cute, refreshing and shows there's more to culture than geography and ethnicity

BY EMI WAINWRIGHT In its first-ever performance for Culture Night, members of the BYUH Gamers Club dressed as different video game characters, like Mario, Pikachu, and Link, and danced to “Jump Up, Superstar!” the theme song for the video game “Super Mario Odyssey.”

While the others danced together around him, Riley Hand, a freshman from Florida majoring in computer science, took center stage as Mario and bopped along solo to the beat of the song.

Jordan Donaldson, a senior from Arizona majoring in communications, said seeing Gamers Club perform in Culture Night was a dream come true because he wanted them to do a performance when he was in the presidency a few years ago.

“It always bothered me that the only other clubs [that performed] besides ethnic cultures were stuff like ballroom dancing. There’s always been this arbitrary glass ceiling around Culture Night, and I was happy to see Gamers Club decide to break that. I think it was a way of saying, ‘Gamers have a culture too.’”

Donaldson said culture is all about identity, which is deeper than a geographical location or ethnicity. “People around the world now are able to have a sense of community through different mediums. I think Gamers Club is all about bringing people together who love games. They can have fun and make friends regardless of race or gender.”

Killian Grawe, a freshman from Texas majoring in political science, performed with the club. She said, “It’s kind of unorthodox to think, ‘Oh, gamers, you have a culture too? That’s weird.’”

To Grawe, gamer culture is unique. She said, “If you wanted to play into stereotypes, it’s Mountain Dew and Doritos. I feel like gamers, Gamer's Club danced to "Jump Up Superstar" from the "Super Mario Odyssey" game.

Photo by Chad Hsieh 20

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whenever you start mentioning a specific game that someone else plays, you get this instant connection because you know what each other is talking about.”

In the intro video played before its performance, Club President Kristen Conrad, a senior majoring in English from Washington, said, “Our club’s mission statement is… for everyone to have a good time, play games, and take a break.

We hope that through our club, students will be able to make and strengthen friendships, develop skills such as teamwork, negotiation, and problem-solving.

“Whether you are an avid gamer or you just like to have fun every once in a while, there is something for everyone. I think the most important thing that I wish for people to understand about our culture is that there is a place for everyone.”

Jackson Tilo, a Laie local who is studying computer science at Clover Park Technical College, said he was not expecting a performance from the club. “I’m a huge gamer. So when they had their opening number as Super Smash Bros., it caught my attention. The song they chose was perfect. It was cute, simple, and everything was pulled together very well.”

Maddie Grames, a sophomore from California majoring in peacebuilding, called the performance refreshing. “It was a nice change of pace in the midst of all the other cultural performances.”

Tilo concluded, “I tip my hat to The BYUH Gamers for their time and dedication. As a former club member, their performance has made us all proud.”

•

Graphics by Michele Crowley

Ballroom Club spins its way across the stage From the waltz to the hustle, club members work with partners and as a team to share unique culture

BY J. ESTON DUNN Learning cooperation and coordination by teaching people to dance in pairs and working together as a precision team, said Ballroom Club members, are some of the unique opportunities to be gained by joining the club and performing at Culture Night. Although it doesn’t represent a specific country, Ballroom Club members said it was important to perform in Culture Night because dance is intertwined with culture and can be a culture itself.

“It may not be a culture in the traditional sense with a geographic area or specific people,” said Corbin Maciel, a sophomore studying biochemistry from Oregon. “Ballroom is a very unique culture to dance since dance is a big part of culture and dance can form its own.”

While Ballroom isn’t tied to one country or region, audience and performers said it is important to represent it in Culture Night.

Damon Kumar, a senior from Fiji studying hospitality and tourism management and business, said, “Culture Night doesn’t have to be different countries with their own culture but should be open to any including ballroom.”

Kumar said he preferred the second night of Culture Night with the Ballroom performance as being “entertaining and exciting to watch, especially all the spinning lifts.”

Hailey Steinagel, a sophomore studying history from Florida, explained, “[Ballroom] plays a part in European culture [because] a lot of courtship is in ballroom. It’s not any sort of country in there, but there is merit in it because of the various cultures it reflects.”

Performers also described the unique opportunities Ballroom Club provided them compared to other clubs.

“You’re with a partner the entire time which makes it different from the other dances because you have a two-person team,” said Brec Jorgenson, a freshman from Utah studying human resource.

“You are a lot more focused on formations and you have to lead a girl the entire time and she has to follow,” Jorgenson continued. “It’s the closest to an American culture dance, beside hip-hop, that was out that night. It’s got a style of its own.”

Fellow Ballroom dancer Maciel said, “The approach was formal,” when compared to the other clubs he’d participated in.

“We had a lot of fun learning and doing the dances, but it took coordination between partners.You couldn’t just focus on yourself.

You had to pay attention to the other person to make sure you weren’t out of sync.” •

According to club members, ballroom is a major part of European culture and courtship. Shown dancing are husband and wife Jacob and Jennifer Makaiwi.

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Celebrating African culture around the world Afro World Club showcases diversity and shows how unity brings people together

BY WILL KRUEGER To show how the power of unity can light the world and to showcase African cultures from all over the world, said Afro World Club leaders, 32 people performed energetic dances from North America, Europe and Africa at Culture Night.

Jackie Morris, president of the Afro World Club and a junior from Virginia majoring in social work, said, “The idea was to celebrate

Natasha Mathurent takes part in the Afro World Club performance.

She was born in Venezuela, but raised in Canada. Photo by Chad Hsieh 22

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the many descendants of Africa. We separated the performance into different regions. We started with the Caribbean, Europe, Latin America, North America and then back to Africa. We were showcasing different regions of the world where Africans have been.”

According to Morris there were people performing from all over the world representing Africans everywhere. “People were wearing different flags during the performance, some to represent where they came from.”

The motto of the Afro World Club is, “So powerful is the light of unity that it can illuminate the whole earth.” Toni Shipp, vice president of the Afro World Club and a sophomore from California majoring in communications said the motto is what the club wanted to portray in the performance.

Shipp said, “We all come from Africa that is a very exciting, energetic place. Even though we have no direct connection, we still have that culture in our regions.

She added, “We have contributed so much to music and dance.

Even though Africans are so far apart from each other we are still family.

There are a lot of similarities to our dances, but no matter where you [go] around the world there is so much energy. That exemplifies our roots so well.”

Shipp said, “The cool thing about Africans is no matter where we went around the world we kind of did the same things. We had dance and food that are quite similar but also unique to our regions.”

“We have members in our club from Latin America. I’m from North America. Others with Caribbean roots.Yet we all share the same bond. We just wanted to showcase that around the world.”

Adriannah Metta, a senior studying anthropology from Papua New Guinea, performed for Afro World Club. She said, “One thing I really enjoyed was the goal the presidency had in mind. That was representing Africans in the various African diaspora throughout the world.You noticed that we danced a little bit of everything that was basically the evolution of African dancing from the motherland to hiphop to infused Latin and Brazil.”

Metta added, “Representing Afro World was an honor because it’s a debut club. A lot of people mistake it for Africa but the main representation was to educate people of the various African diaspora.

Sometimes people think I’m African, so I thought I could be a part of it.”

Morris said the club’s performance was positively received.

“It went so well. Plenty of people have come up to us and said how much they enjoyed it, and they wanted to join us next year. To see the reception that the club has received and to see what it’s done for the members has been great.” •

Hip-hop unites members, bridges cultural gaps Students say the street-style dance helps them express themselves without words

BY MACKENZIE BEAVER The Hip-hop Club at BYUH has more than 50 students who are members of the group with a goal of learning and improving dancing. Members of the club shared they feel united through their passion for this street-style dance.

James Constantino, a junior from California studying biology, is the president of the Hip-hop Club and has been a member since his first semester in 2013, and he said when the Hip-hop Club formed, there were only 11 members. Constantino said, “The special thing about Hip-hop Club is that it does not matter who you are or where you are from. All that matters is what you can bring to the club and your love for the dance.”

Constantino said, “The initial thing that unites us is our love for dance. People who join the Hip-hop Club just want to dance. The thing that helps us stick together is our bond and friendship that grows from this club.” Constantino said he is still friends with some of the members he met in 2013.

The mission of the Hip-hop Club is to help cross cultural barriers and boundaries. Constantino added, “We want to help bridge the cultural gap and help people find the commonality of their love of dancing. In hip-hop, and just like any other dancing, you can understand each other without speaking the same language.”

Constantino said hip-hop and the Hip-hop Club at BYUH helps him incorporate a lot of what he grew up with and is like a second culture to him. “I am a Filipino at heart,” Constantino said. “But I grew up in America, so I am also American. Hip-hop is like a second culture to me and it really helps me express myself.”

Constantino explained how hip-hop has given him the chance to let out his inner feelings and frustration through dancing. Hip-hop is a release and has allowed Constantino to express himself in ways and aspects of his life that words just cannot do, he said.

Grace “Krayce” Tufaga, a junior from New Zealand studying social work, is also a member of the Hip-hop Club. She said Hip-hop Club has allowed her to watch people get out of their comfort zones and develop a passion for dance.

Tufaga said, “When teaching hip-hop, I don’t only look at those who can dance but those who have confidence to push themselves to the limit to get the motions down and perfected.

“It was rewarding to see everyone smiling and enjoying themselves during this experience. It made the end result all worth the experience and

James Constantino and Hip-hop Club members show their moves during Culture Night. Photo by Chad Hsieh

time. Through this I was able to see people develop a new passion for this type of dance. It was a very exciting thing for me to watch.”

According to Constantino, hip-hop began in the Bronx of New York City as a way for people to vent and express their feelings and creativity. It is now a universal dance and influences the world.

Yuta Nagano, a senior from Connecticut majoring in business management, is a dancer in the Hip-hop Club. Nagano said, “The Hiphop Club has given me many opportunities to interact with people from all around the world. It allows for everyone who participates to broaden their cultural perspective and try something new.

Historically, hip-hop has brought many kinds of people together, and it continues to do so today. I’m really grateful for that.”

The Hip-hop Club has brought people from around the world from all different cultures on the BYUH campus together by uniting everyone who has an interest in this type of dance together, Nagano said.

People who join the Hip-hop Club said they joined because of their interest in dancing and that it unites everyone who has that same skill set and interest together. •

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Clockwise from left: The Fiji, Hawaii, Aotearoa, India, Korea, Taiwan, Latin America, Indonesia, Hong Kong, Mongolia, Cook Islands, and Thailand clubs. Photos by Chad Hsieh

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Three students from the U.S. mainland said they enjoyed performing in cultures other than their own broadening their understanding and making new friends. Photos by Chad Hsieh and Ho Yin Li.

Learning by dancing

BYUH students from the U.S. mainland say they joined Culture Night for new experiences and to enhance understanding of others

BY ELIJAH HADLEY Despite not coming from any of the ethnic or cultural backgrounds of the clubs they performed with, three students from the United States mainland said they chose to participate in Culture Night to build relationships, have a good time and strengthen their understanding of cultures with which they were already familiar.

Persuaded by his friend, Shan Sundaram, to perform with the India Club, Corbin Maciel, a biochemistry major and sophomore from Oregon, said he was skeptical at first but ended up loving being a part of Culture Night.

Maciel said he grew to love the dances the group performed through the practices. “At first I just wanted to perform and get it over with,” he said. “After I met the people in the club, I had so much fun dancing and acting like I was in a Bollywood movie.”

In its performance, the Indian students and their friends performed a parody of Bollywood romantic comedies in the club’s 10-minute 26

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time slot. “As I spent time practicing with the students, I recognized how similar American and Indian culture is. The way Bollywood tells a love story is a lot like how an American chick flick would tell it. I guess cheesy love stories are universal,” he said jokingly.

Maciel continued, “The more I danced and learned about the culture it felt less like practice. I was just having a good time. It was great to see how American and Indian cultures coexist so well. What started out as a favor to my friend became a great experience.”

Alyssa Allen, a junior from Colorado majoring in humanities, said she performed at Culture Night to feel like a part of something bigger. Allen performed for both the Hawaiian and Chinese clubs. She previously served a Mandarin-speaking mission in Vancouver, Canada. Allen said she fell in love with the language while serving because it allowed her to communicate better with the Chinese and Taiwanese members in her community.

“I was friends with the club president,” she said. “And I was very impressed with how the students moved and worked together like a well-oiled machine. For the Chinese students, it’s all about perfection, and I really learned this as I practiced with them.

“In Chinese culture, perfection is important when it comes to performing. We couldn’t even practice on the stage until we all had the dance moves perfectly choreographed.”

Nick Kitchens, a sophomore majoring in business management from California, danced for the Kiribati Club. Kitchens, who served his mission in Kiribati, said, “The culture and performing with them really changed me. I have appreciated the values of family and love. It’s been easier to prioritize the gospel in my life.

“When I focus most on family and charity, I feel the same love I felt from my first exposure to Kiribati culture nearly four years ago.” •

Two performers, 10 clubs Moimoi and Lloyd say doing multiple dances was challenging but worthwhile

BY ESTHER INSIGNE With motivation to take advantage of all opportunities, Jack Moimoi and Delphia Lloyd joined multiple clubs in preparation for Culture Night. They said it was difficult to balance school, work, and practices, but they said they were grateful for the chance to represent cultures other than their own.

Jack Moimoi

Jack Moimoi, a freshman from Fiji studying computer science, smiled as he named the six clubs he performed for during Culture Night. The six clubs were: Hawaii, Tahiti, Fiji, Philippines, Cook Islands and Samoa.

Moimoi explained, “I thought that as I get older in the education system it would be harder to participate in Culture Night.” He originally planned to perform for nine clubs, but some practices clashed with others. Moimoi decided to perform for six clubs instead.

different culture in BYUH dancing in different [clubs].You could see everyone coming together and being united.”

Being surrounded by good friends helped Moimoi as well. He explained, “[My friends] were the ones who actually helped me practice the dances when I had to go to a different chapter to practice. I would ask them to help me catch up on what the other clubs did that I missed.”

Melita Matanatabu, a junior from Fiji studying social work, said Moimoi is a fast learner and a very enthusiastic person. “When you’re with Jack you can just laugh all day long.

Even when he sees that you’re sad he’ll try some way to cheer you up,” she said.

Moimoi added, “Now that I'm thinking about it, I'm like, ‘How is it even possible?’ I did all these with all these workloads. If you think about it every second of the day and plan it out it actually is possible.”

Delphia Lloyd

Moimoi said scheduling played a huge role in his success balancing practices with work and school. In addition to Culture Night practices Moimoi had to learn a new dance at the Polynesian Cultural Center, where he works.

So he said he made sure he had enough time to rest, do homework and study, and work by sticking to a detailed schedule.

Moimoi said dancing with people from different cultures made him happy. “Seeing them have fun made me have fun during the performance. At the end I think just seeing all the different cultures come together, because it wasn't all Samoans dancing [for] Samoa, all Fijians dancing [for] Fiji… it was a mix of Americans, Fijians, Mexicans and every

Inspired by the variety of cultures around her, Delphia Lloyd, a sophomore from Idaho studying hospitality and tourism management, said she performed for four clubs during Culture Night: Samoa, Aotearoa, Philippines and Hip-hop.

Knowing she only had a few chances of performing in Culture Night, Lloyd said she decided to join as many clubs as she could.

Samoa and New Zealand were at the top of her list of clubs to join because it’s her cultural background. “I wanted to represent my granddad and my nana and dedicate my performance to them,” she said.

Lloyd said praying before every practice was one of her favorite things to do while preparing for Culture Night. On the night of the performance, Lloyd explained how the New Zealand Club dedicated their performance to those affected by the recent shootings in Christchurch.

“I was standing there, and I was just praying, asking Heavenly Father to help me represent my nana and my mom. Also represent all the Kiwis who were hurt, and I felt that

Pictured above, Delphia Lloyd, and left, Jack Moimoi.

Photos by Chad Hsieh

in their performance. The spirit I felt was the strongest in all my experience,” she said.

Before the practice for Samoa, Lloyd found herself asking for her grandfather’s guidance when she performed. “I didn't realize until after but in the Samoan practice I smiled so much, and I could not stop screaming. I felt so much energy, and I felt him with me. I knew I made him proud,” she explained.

Lloyd said she was unsure about joining the Philippines Club. However once she started coming to their practices, she found herself loving it. “Learning about other cultures was so beautiful to me.”

Duane John Pigao, a sophomore from the Philippines studying marketing, said it was easy to teach Lloyd the traditional dances because she was a good dancer. Lloyd danced the ‘Bulaklakan,’ which Pigao described as celebrating flowers and its life. He said “Delphia really portrayed that [when she] danced.”

Balancing practices and learning choreography was the biggest challenge Lloyd faced when preparing for Culture Night. She had to attend one club’s practice for an hour then run off to the other club’s practice since many practiced at the same time.

Lloyd said she learned how to prioritize and not give up from the two months of practices for Culture Night. She said, “During Culture Night I messed up. There were some moves I did not even know because I wasn't able to go to all practices all the time. But I learned to go out there and just have confidence in the things you can do and have fun.” • WI NT ER 2 0 1 9

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Clubs include Ballroom, India, Hong Kong, and Hawaii.

Photos by Chad Hsieh

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Clubs shown are Philippines and Tonga.

Photos by Ho Yin Li

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Culture Night 2019 Mahalo to those behind the scenes

By Alyssa Odom Culture Night 2019 would not have been a success without the expertise and hard work of those who played roles off the stage and behind the scenes. The Student Leadership, Activities and Service staff took the lead in organizing Culture Night. Taylor Steele, Joshua Christiansen, and their team from the Media Production Center created the introduction videos for each club performing at Culture Night. Many others came together to combine their time and talents to make Culture Night a possibility and success.

Alison Whiting, director of the SLAS department, was one of the leads in organizing and producing Culture Night. The Student Leadership team consisted of students: Fahren Niu, Eli Harris, Taylor Tuala, Hei Long Ip, Fa’alenu’u Akeripa, Shijir Purevdorj, and Jia Jun Liew.

Behind the scenes Sonny Ah Puck, director of sound, and his team, along with Shawn Keliiliki, director of lighting and his crew, made the lighting and sound possible for all of the clubs. Other contributors included Randy Sharp with facilities Management, Deidra Uli’I, Educational Outreach director, and university set-up team Janeen Kaka and Molia Salanoa. Security for the event was managed by Earl “Torch” Morris, Sifa Talakai and their team. Student volunteers also were the ushers in the Cannon Activities Center.

Danielle Knox, a junior from California studying graphic design, was a part of the MPC team who edited the videos. “Seeing the crowd’s reaction to the videos we had made was definitely the highlight. Even though I wasn’t performing, I was so happy to be able to contribute something that I have a passion for and seeing how well it was received by the audience.”

She added, “Seeing Tay’s artistic vision come to life with the intro videos and being a part of the editing process was really cool for me. I’m grateful that there was a chance for everyone to contribute their talents and passions to Culture Night 2019.”

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Graphics by Lynne Hardy

Tonga Club President, Tiera Tuikolovatu, performs with fellow women during Culture night. Photo by Chad Hsieh

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Clockwise from top: The Philippines, Singapore and Malaysia, Melanesia, Australia, Japan, and Kiribati Clubs dance to represent their cultures during Culture Night.

Photos by Chad Hsieh and Ho Yin Li

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