Eliot House
I step on stage with my co-director Elizabeth Eze, and we can feel the adrenaline rush as we introduce the 25th Annual Cultural Rhythms Festival to a crowd of 1200 students, faculty and community members.
My name is Kevin Liu, and I am an intern at the Harvard Foundation for Intercultural and Race Relations. Every year, the interns organize a day-long celebration consisting of a food festival, two student performance shows, and an awards ceremony for the honored Artist of the Year. This year, the festival provided a stage for diverse, multicultural, artistic expression from 26 different student performance groups. In addition, the Harvard Foundation selected an artist who embodies the spirit of Cultural Rhythms: the unity of artistic contribution, promotion of diversity and active humanitarian efforts.
Our 2010 Artist of the Year, Mr. Wyclef Jean, has had a longstanding and noteworthy career both as member of the Fugees and as a solo artist. However, most impressive are his contributions through his organization, the Yéle Haiti Foundation, which aims to support the people of Haiti by promoting sports and the arts. In addition, the organization distributes food to communities in need throughout Haiti and mobilizes emergency disaster relief, including its current efforts in response to the January 2010 earthquake.
When Wyclef Jean steps on stage, the crowd goes wild. He opens the show with a multi-lingual free-style rap and the festivities begin. Through the plethora of groups, everyone is impressed by the amount of talent and diversity of Harvard students—from the fan-dance from Asian American Dance Troupe to the traditional Indian Classical Dance to the modern break-dancing from the Harvard Breakers. The precision and synchronization of the Ballet Folklorico de Atzlan and the Irish Dancers amaze the audience. We clap along to the playful Appalachian music from Bluegrass and are touched by the soulful songs of Kuumba Singers.
Whether we are in the audience, backstage, or performing, for a short time, the show brings us together as one community in a shared experience. For me, this simple connection is the most rewarding moment of the entire show. In that moment, we engage in cross-cultural understanding and embrace the true meaning of unity by celebrating our diversity together.
Kevin Liu and classmate Katie Gunn will be emceeing Pre-frosh Palooza this Sunday evening, an event inspired by Cultural Rhythms and exclusively for the Class of 2014. Acts performing at Prefrosh-Palooza will include the Harvard Breakers, the Harvard Ballet Company, the Callbacks, Mariachi Veritas, the Pan-African Dance and Music Ensemble, and many others. Don’t miss it—Sunday April 25, 9-11pm in Sanders Theatre!
