The sights and sounds of Asia- the smashing of wooden boards with crazy kung fu moves, the bright swirls of raving glow sticks, the gentle melodies of Asian pop songs, the modern reenactment of a Japanese wedding – all in one hilarious night. This was the premise of Saturday’s annual Asian Arts Talent Show Arts. Andover students, faculty and guests from far and wide were treated to a show full of dramatic performances, both traditional and modern, giving them a taste of the different cultures. The MCs of the night, Wesley Mui ’06 and Dina Burkitbayeva ’06, promised an exciting lineup for the night. The audience first met Mui, a nerdy Asian kid with his pants pulled high. His nagging mom, played by cross-dressing Eddie Kang ‘07, capitalized on the controlling Asian parent stereotype. Mui joked, “For the record, I am not that Asian boy though I am musically challenged.” This skit was one of many that introduced show’s acts. There were a wide variety of acts covering all genres-drama, music, action, comedy. Andi Zhou ’09 began the night with an intense performance on the piano of “Red Flowers Blooming on the Mountain”, a traditional Chinese folksong. The song was full of intricate notes and scales and was later gracefully performed by Alicia Keyes ’09 on the dulcimer, a beautiful carved traditional Chinese instrument. Next, there was a burst of enthusiasm, color, and Indian flavor from two talented dancers, Rashmi Bhat ’06 and Nandini Vijayakumar ’06. Following this was the Japanese 200’s hilarious reenactment of a Japanese folktale of an arranged marriage. Miguel Tavarez ’08 adorned a pink dress to be the girl mouse that ended up marrying the sexy mouse played by Billy Cannon ’07. Cannon swept Tavarez off his feet as they walked off stage to wild audience laughter and applause. Best said by Tavarez himself, “It was a good portrayal and we still had tons of fun!” The night took a dramatic turn from cute to serious with an intense martial arts presentation of karate, tae kwon do, and kung fu by Mui, George Pratt ’06, John Shin ’07, and Hyung Tae Kim ’09. The boys broke boards with a variety of skillful techniques, drawing, shock and awe from the audience. Then the entire auditorium slowly turned dark. Immediately the audience was surprised with the burst of colorful lights! These neon lights were given off by the glow sticks of the freestyle ravers, Robert Sun ’07, Jason Zhu ’07, Q Yankes ’07, and Allen Cai ’07. The audience’s eyes gleamed from watching the crazy swirls and flying blazes of light. Everyone was amazed, and as Zhu explained, “raving brings energy to the stage, energy that the audience can feel.” To show a side of modern Asian culture, there were the performances of popular Asian pop songs. Olivia Pei ’07 and Chris Li ’07 put on a flawless performance of “At Least I Still Have You,” a sad Chinese love song that Henry Yin ’07 sang along to. “Father,” a popular Korean song, was performed by a self created group called FOB (Flashes of Brilliance) with Vincent Siu ’06 on the drums, Cai on the guitar, Wynne Lam ’06 on the keyboard, Chris Cheung ’08 on the violin accompanying Victor Kim ’06 crazy rapping, and John Shin ’07’s vocals. The audience loved the Andover Japanese Club’s mockumentary of Memoirs of a Geisha. It was full of hilarious moments, such as Palmer Rampell ’06 dressed as a geisha and singing “I Feel Pretty,” from West Side Story. The end of the clip featured Rampell and Pratt as geishas reenacting a scene from the movie. Edwin Quattlebaum, Instructor in History, gasping at Rampell, said, “That’s a crime against humanity!” The last segment of the evening was the fashion show. This year, there was a contemporary twist. Models mixed traditional attire with quirky modern elements, showing Asian fashion as it is today. This fusion was perfectly exhibited by Best Female Model Blaine Johnson ’08, who wore a Japanese kimono with ripped black tights and Chucks. The show was so successful that it made Sara Kelly ’08 “want to go to Asia, like now!”
