Unique cultures are something to be proud of, as demonstrated by SVSU students from across the globe.
Last Friday, students representing Azerbaijan, Cameroon, China, Germany, Japan, Pakistan, the Philippines, Saudi Arabia, South Korea and the United States performed during the annual event Intercultural Night.
Vanguard photo | Logan Mooney
Fahad Alabdulkarim of SVSU’s Saudi Students Association introduced the major scientific contributions to
Islamic history during Intercultural Night.
Intercultural studies junior Ayana Miyamoto performed with other students from Japan. They presented calligraphy, singing and a traditional Japanese dance.
“When I was a child, I used to practice calligraphy, but most Japanese don’t practice it a lot,” she said. “It’s a hard thing (to do), but many audience members enjoyed it. We wanted the audience to respond to us and many did, so that was really fun for us.”
The theme for the night was “Around the World in 80 Minutes,” with an additional theme of the science fiction television show “Doctor Who.” The event was hosted by the show’s character The Doctor and his companion.
“You think you’ve seen it all, but think again. Outside those doors is a world of adventure,” said Zachery Wood, who performed as The Doctor, during the show. “There’s one thing to remember: no matter where you are in the world, your family and your home will always be with you.”
One student from Azerbaijan played guitar, sang and breakdanced. Students from Pakistan danced to a song about how much their people love the land. Students from Saudi Arabia presented information about major scientific contributions in Islamic history, and then performed a traditional Saudi dance.
Secondary Spanish education junior Stephanie Marr directed the show.
“I want to educate and inform the audience through entertainment,” she said. “I feel like we as a university should be more diverse ethnically and culturally, and this is just an event where we can show off multiculturalism.”
The Malcolm Field Theatre was packed with attendees there to watch the 30-40 performers present their acts.
Business junior Jungsu Kim attended the event and said she appreciated that other students had worked together to show off her South Korean culture.
“It’s important to have an open mind because we have a lot of international students at SVSU,” she said. “They can learn from each other and share culture.”
Kim said she believes events like Intercultural Night should be even more prevalent.
Miyamoto said she appreciated the chance to work with other students from Japan.
“This night was a good opportunity to learn about other countries’ culture. We don’t know their cultures, so we will have new discoveries,” she said.