From traditional cultural dances and group musical performances to solo speeches about their heritage, performers and coordinators for this year’s Multicultural Show spent months rehearsing for the official performances, with this year’s theme: “Different Routes, Shared Humanity.”

It took place Jan. 30 in Meyer Hall; in total, there were two in-school performances and one in the evening at 7:30 p.m. This year’s audition process was altered as well. In October, groups submitted videos of themselves performing their piece. Based on those recordings, the presidents of each cultural club, as well as Black Student Union (BSU) co-sponsor and assistant principal Teneisha Finney, voted on who was called back for in-person auditions.

“I felt stressed during auditions because, at the time, I was also working on two theatre shows, and I had to prescreen (all of) the audition recordings,” Latin Hispanic Heritage Club (LHHC) co-president and theatre senior Andrea Mora said. “But I was also excited and felt confident in my piece.” 

Latin Hispanic Heritage Club and Caribbean Heritage Club 

The Latin Hispanic Heritage Club (LHHC) and the Caribbean Heritage Club (CHC) each featured around 30 people from both clubs,  performing multiple pieces, including cultural dances ranging from traditional salsa to contemporary pieces such as “Aguanile”, which Mora choreographed, and performed in within her role as an LHHC officer. 

 “I was able to see more of the work submitted and commit more time to the making, theme, order, and execution of the show,” Mora said.

CHC featured a salsa dance piece titled “La Negra Tiene Tumbado,” which was coordinated by CHC member and theatre junior Hannah Gordon. Leading up to the show, Gordon and her accompanying dancers practiced almost weekly to meet show rehearsals and deadlines, but similarly to Mora, she found it “impossible” to schedule rehearsals at times where all of her performers could attend. 

“My dancers are extremely hard working and always focused in rehearsal, and they are amazing to work with,” Mora said. “But as dancers, that also means they are super busy, but they are also really good about catching up on choreography and making the piece the best it can be. “ 

Gordon said that “everyone in her piece had put in a lot of effort and sacrifice,” while Mora said she was  “grateful” to perform a piece in her final year that represented “her work and love for her culture.”

“Almost everyone in my piece is from a different country, which you see when we hold the flag representing the country we come from,” Mora said. “The dancers represent the purity of our home countries, and I think the world as a whole could use the purity that brings out joy, peace, and humanity through everyone.” 

Jewish Student Union 

The Jewish Student Union (JSU) had 10 performers for this year’s show and featured a variety of musical performances, featuring piano, violin, saxophone, trumpet, trombone, and other instruments; as well as vocal performances. JSU president and communications senior Olivia Kahn gave a speech introducing JSU during the showcase, and she said she was involved in planning out every one of their performances. 

“To plan, I spoke with each of the groups that were selected by the cultural club presidents for the JSU block of the show,” Kahn said. 

JSU went through weeks of rehearsals ahead of the final performance, with Kahn describing the process as being “great and really exciting” to see the show in its entirety and plan out the routines showcasing Jewish culture and heritage.

“The goal of (JSU’s) pieces is to share our culture with everyone, not just our history, but our values as well,” Kahn said. 

Asian Cultural Society 

While group performances made up the majority of this year’s show, some pieces were performed solo, such as a speech given by Asian Cultural Society (ACS) member and communications sophomore Zahab Ali about his own Pakistani heritage. A first time performer for the showcase, Ali said he wanted to write a speech that blended a “middle ground” between the theme of the show and his own experiences with his culture.

“There’s only so many children of Pakistani immigrants (at school), but beyond that, as one of the only solo speeches in the show, it feels as though I can do something beyond just my name,” Ali said. 

Besides Ali’s speech, ACS had multiple dance pieces featured from South and Southeast Asian cultures, as well as vocal performances of traditional Chinese songs. Each presentation featured elements from the performers’ respective home countries, blending together their individual cultures with those from the other culture clubs to create one show. 

“You get to see the values held by so many different people and just how much our world varies in the bigger picture,” Ali said. “Truthfully, I think the show is a way for our school to see what makes our campus what it is today.”

Black Student Union 

While performances for the show are mostly done by students, staff members also played a role in the rehearsal and preparation process, such as Black Student Union (BSU) co-sponsor and English teacher Moriah Carlisle. Ms. Finney, who serves as the main coordinator for the show, and Ms. Carlisle both supervised rehearsals, which were mainly student run.

“I support Ms. Finney where I can for BSU, and I run (their rehearsals) so she can focus on putting together the Multicultural Show as a whole,” Ms. Carlisle said. “We really do work as a team, and she pours a lot of work into the show and piecing it together.”

Ms. Carlisle explained that the goal BSU had with their performances, ranging from group dances to monologues this year, was to “spread awareness of black culture” and create a “safe space” where students could feel accepted on campus. 

“I think there’s a lot of beauty in sharing our story and experience,” Ms. Carlisle said. “When it comes to the Multicultural Show, it’s just one beautiful lens into the diversity we have on campus where we have an amazing opportunity to find a shared experience.”

With a variety of cultures coming together to coordinate, plan, and put on this year’s Multicultural Show, the title of “Different Routes, Shared Humanity” linked together the performances as the uniting theme, and what Ms. Carlisle wanted to “resonate with the audience.”

“With everything going on in the world, it’s nice to be reminded of the melting pot we are as a country and as a school,” Ms. Carlisle said. “It’s beautiful that we’re able to come together and share our stories and have that connection.”