International night wrap up

Shreya Desai, Staff Writer
March 14, 2017

Lambert High School is peppered with a huge variety of cultures, and this diversity allows the students to be exposed to many different kinds of people. Out of the 180 seemingly long days of school, there is one night in which the students have the opportunity to represent their cultures and backgrounds with their classmates: International Night.

Mahima Siripurapu and Sai Kilaru effortlessly and enthusiastically cracked jokes and engaged the audience through their emceeing.

The emcees for the night, Mahima Siripurapu and Sai Kilaru, won the hearts of the audience as they humorously and interactively took on the role as tour guides. The audience felt a connection to the show as they were taken on “a trip around the world” while still in the seats of the echoing auditorium.

Marie Daly courageously performed “Life of the Party” by Shawn Mendes.

To kick off the show, Marie Daly performed an American pop song, “Life of the Party” by Shawn Mendes. As she stepped out of the curtains, the audience roared in anticipation to witness what this night had to offer, and Daly wholeheartedly set the bar extremely high.

Lambert Orchestra representatives Amandeep Basi, Jonathan He, Joan Hong, and Ms. Julie Rossetter perform Irish pieces as two 5th grade dancers from the Drake School of Irish Dance accompany the music with an Irish folk dance.

Lambert Orchestra represented Ireland through two Irish folk songs, “Red Hair Boy” and “Whiskey Before Breakfast,” and they brought in two Irish dancers from the Drake School of Irish Dance. The group captivated the audience with great music and an accompanying dance by the two adorable 5th grade girls.

Sakshika Vakiti and Yasaswini Potturi depicted Indian culture through a Bollywood fusion dance.

Lambert’s very own Sakshika Vakiti and a guest performer from South Forsyth High School, Yasaswini Potturi, performed a fusion dance consisting of Bollywood,  classical, and hiphop twists. Their dance showcased the many colors of India, and they carried it out gracefully for the audience to appreciate.

Margarita Salazar, a junior at Lambert, sang a Columbian song to represent the culture of her Columbian heritage.

Margarita Salazar, elegantly performed “Tuyo”, the theme song of the hit Colombian TV show Narcos. Standing tall and proud on stage, Salazar charmed the audience with her natural fluidity and strong voice.

Crème de la Crème, a K-pop group consisting of Elynna Chang, Odelia Huang, Hazel Lee, Joan Hong, Christina Sun, and Stephanie Tian, danced to the compelling genre of Korean pop.

CLC (Crème de la Crème) danced to “TT” by TWICE and “Playing with Fire” by BLACKPINK, two very popular K-pop songs, and the audience enthusiastically clapped along as the Korean pop culture was vivaciously presented.

Tanya Roy and Anchal Kumar, two seniors at Lambert, danced to an Indian classical fusion.

Tanya Roy and Anchal Kumar presented an Indian-American dance fusion with aspects of a traditional Indian dance (Kathak), Bollywood, and American contemporary. They gracefully brought this combination to life, and their moves and expressions stole the hearts of the audience.

Adriel Carrion sang the Prince Royce version of “Stand By Me”, with a mix or English and Spanish lyrics.

Adriel Carrion, a mere freshman at Lambert High School, proved himself to have one of Lambert’s strongest voices as he sang “Stand By Me” with a combination of English and Spanish lyrics. The audience was awed by the talent and confidence radiating from him, and the song was given complete justice.

The Lambert Dance Company made an appearance to depict Cuba and Spain through a salsa dance.

Lambert Dance Company’s Grace Anderson, Olivia Nogales, Taylor Ettershank, Patrick Bullock, Hayley Franco, Neha Gulrajani, Megan Werner, Sam Genzale, Morgan Mauk, Mackenzie Monroe, and Gabbi Soong performed a sweet and sassy Latin American dance to the song “Muevelo” by Sofia Reyes. Their salsa, choreographed by Hayley Franco, brought the stage to life as their upbeat song and dance made the audience want to jump to their feet.

The fashion show consisted of students dressing in outfits from countries all over the world, including Russia, Korea, China, America, Ghana, and India.

The talent portion of International Night came to a close with the fashion show. Students from a variety of cultures came together and represented their ethnicities through their traditional wear. Coming out of the curtains in pairs, the fashion show participants proudly walked the stage in their cultural clothing, and the audience witnessed the many different heritages that Lambert holds.

The cafeteria was filled with posters and food made by the students to represent many different countries.

After the talent portion of the night, everyone gathered in the cafeteria to eat and appreciate the food and posters from all around the world. Many students kindly provided food and posters from their desired countries, and they all turned out to be spectacular.

Overall, Lambert High School’s 5th annual International Night was a success, for both the audience and participants were able to come together and celebrate the many different colors of Lambert. The 2016-2017 International Night Committee, consisting of Hannah Kim, Gouri Rajesh, Shreya Desai, Jake Kwon, Casie Minot, Janani Guru, and Shannon Xayaraj, put hours of dedication and commitment for this night, and at the end, it all paid off.

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Photo Credit: All images taken by Stephanie Lopez from the Lambert Photo Team.