Korean Club, Spanish Club, Vietnamese Student Association, and others jockey for the top slot in this year's dance competition marking the end of International Week at Bolsa.
By Julie Vu
On March 28th in the East gym, students gathered in anticipation of the last assembly of the year. As usual, it is the International Week Assembly, where clubs each chooses a country to represent and create a dance that depicts and pays homage to the country's unique culture.
The assembly opened with an introduction to all of the "princesses" of the countries participating in this year's assembly. Sydney Lee and Justin Nhan introduced the princesses and gave descriptions of who they are and what they like to do or participate in, etc. This year, there were 11 princesses, which means that 11 different countries were represented.The countries being represented this year were Egypt, the Philippines Korea, Mexico, Vietnam, Japan, England, Norway, the Caribbean, Cambodia, and the United States.
As usual, ASB opened the show with a non-competing performance, representing the United Kingdom with faux performance of the popular talent-hunting series X-Factor. They had three dances which ranged from quirkily humorous to hardcore to cute. Performing the opening acts of the assembly, ASB, as expected, riled up the audience with excitement and set the standard high for the rest of the performances that day.
Following ASB was the alliance of Red Cross and FNL, jointly representing the diverse nations of the Caribbean as viewed through the wide-eyed, curious lenses of visiting tourists from a cruise ship. Next was Photography Club, representing Cambodia with a traditional temple prayer followed by an energetic modern dance mix. Class of 2016 represented far-off "frozen" Norway with a mix of drama and dancing inspired by scenes from the Disney film.
VSA, to no-one's surprise, represented Vietnam, and gave a performance marked by their typical flourishes of traditional colorful ao dai and polished choreography. As ever, there was a healthy balance of the traditional dance--with a heavy focus on Princess Vannessa Nguyen--and the modern dance, which this year presented a nostalgic view of old Saigon. With such a large production that showed off the effort put into the performance, it's no surprise that VSA placed second overall in the competition.
Next came the Classes of 2015 and 2017, representing (ancient) Egypt, land of pharaohs, camels, and pyramids.
After that was Korean Club representing both the traditional and modern halves of Korea. Like VSA, their performance combined aspects of both the past and present cultures of Korea, with a beautiful fan dance evoking images of butterflies or dragons transitioning to a montage of K-pop hits from artists such as Big Bang and Girl's Generation. Princess Sarah Pak and Korean Club took home the third place, as revealed in that night's competition.
Next was Filipino Club, representing the Philippines. Japanese Club went after them, representing the land of the rising sun with an assortment of furious martial dances calling to mind the warrior spirit of the samurai.
Spanish club followed with a performance representing the different peoples of Mexico, from the natives descended from the country's ancient Aztec and Mesoamerican heritage to modern styles not so unfamiliar to us. Their sharp choreography and stunning finale allowed Princess Maria Castaneda and Spanish Club to take home a hard-earned first place, later unveiled during that night's performance.
Drama Club, representing America, came next, revealing a uniquely styled performance combining both a compelling drama based on their upcoming production Runaways with segments of dance. The show closed with Art Club's barrage of British pop culture mash-ups--including Doctor Who, Sherlock, and James Bond (with a guest appearance by Grandma as Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II).
All the performances and backdrops were very well done, and it was obvious that each club put a lot of effort into their performances. The night assembly, where parents and outside friends could come to watch, featured extended versions of the performances as well as smaller contests between the princesses and interviews for them. Overall, the International Assembly was entertaining and successful.
As usual, ASB opened the show with a non-competing performance, representing the United Kingdom with faux performance of the popular talent-hunting series X-Factor. They had three dances which ranged from quirkily humorous to hardcore to cute. Performing the opening acts of the assembly, ASB, as expected, riled up the audience with excitement and set the standard high for the rest of the performances that day.
Following ASB was the alliance of Red Cross and FNL, jointly representing the diverse nations of the Caribbean as viewed through the wide-eyed, curious lenses of visiting tourists from a cruise ship. Next was Photography Club, representing Cambodia with a traditional temple prayer followed by an energetic modern dance mix. Class of 2016 represented far-off "frozen" Norway with a mix of drama and dancing inspired by scenes from the Disney film.
VSA, to no-one's surprise, represented Vietnam, and gave a performance marked by their typical flourishes of traditional colorful ao dai and polished choreography. As ever, there was a healthy balance of the traditional dance--with a heavy focus on Princess Vannessa Nguyen--and the modern dance, which this year presented a nostalgic view of old Saigon. With such a large production that showed off the effort put into the performance, it's no surprise that VSA placed second overall in the competition.
Next came the Classes of 2015 and 2017, representing (ancient) Egypt, land of pharaohs, camels, and pyramids.
After that was Korean Club representing both the traditional and modern halves of Korea. Like VSA, their performance combined aspects of both the past and present cultures of Korea, with a beautiful fan dance evoking images of butterflies or dragons transitioning to a montage of K-pop hits from artists such as Big Bang and Girl's Generation. Princess Sarah Pak and Korean Club took home the third place, as revealed in that night's competition.
Next was Filipino Club, representing the Philippines. Japanese Club went after them, representing the land of the rising sun with an assortment of furious martial dances calling to mind the warrior spirit of the samurai.
Spanish club followed with a performance representing the different peoples of Mexico, from the natives descended from the country's ancient Aztec and Mesoamerican heritage to modern styles not so unfamiliar to us. Their sharp choreography and stunning finale allowed Princess Maria Castaneda and Spanish Club to take home a hard-earned first place, later unveiled during that night's performance.
Drama Club, representing America, came next, revealing a uniquely styled performance combining both a compelling drama based on their upcoming production Runaways with segments of dance. The show closed with Art Club's barrage of British pop culture mash-ups--including Doctor Who, Sherlock, and James Bond (with a guest appearance by Grandma as Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II).
All the performances and backdrops were very well done, and it was obvious that each club put a lot of effort into their performances. The night assembly, where parents and outside friends could come to watch, featured extended versions of the performances as well as smaller contests between the princesses and interviews for them. Overall, the International Assembly was entertaining and successful.