The auditorium buzzed with energy as students filled the room, their lively chatter echoing off the walls.
Off stage, students dressed in a variety of cultural attire sat, awaiting their performances.
On April 18, SHS held its cultural festival in the auditorium.
To students, the cultural festival at SHS was more than just outward appearances; rather, it was a way to connect with their cultural roots. Each performance carried a purpose. Dances, fashion shows and other displays celebrated diverse ethnic backgrounds. For student performers, it was a chance to take pride in their heritage while having fun.
“Doing the dance made me feel a lot closer to that (culture),” sophomore Karen Sui said. “I really felt like I was a part of my community.”
Thingyan Dance
Female students from Myanmar performed a dance called the Thingyan dance, celebrating Burmese New Year, also known as the Water Festival.
The Myanmar Student Association (MSA) was in charge of this dance. The association consists mostly of students from Chin State, a small part of the entire country. To highlight the diversity within the association, the students chose this performance to include students from other parts of Burma.
In the past, the club mostly focused on dances that originated from Chin State. This year, MSA wanted to switch things up.
This year, the MSA club wanted to change that.
“We hope that the audience can see the rich culture of Burma,” sponsor Rebecca Mawi said.
To prepare for this festival, students stayed hours after school to improve their dancing skills.
“Seeing them improve and seeing them working together, collaborate, helping each other,” Mawi said. “It makes me happy.”
For some, the dance deepened their connection to their heritage.
“Before doing that performance, I never really was involved with anything that had to do with my culture,” Sui said.
“Y llegaste Tú Guitar Duet
Seniors Gabriel Ramirez and Christian Rosas performed an acoustic song and represented their Mexican heritage.
Ramirez played the guitar and sang while Rosas played the bass. They performed a song titled, “Y llegaste Tú,” by Banda el Recodo.
By performing this song, they hoped the audience would experience a little bit more old-school regional Mexican music compared to music in this new era.
“It’s important because, us as Mexicans, we can express our culture,” Ramirez said.
Nepalese Dance
Student Ridipsa Shrestha represented the country Nepal with an old folk song and a little bit of Tali dance, which is a traditional Nepalese dance.
Shrestha was encouraged by her teachers to perform in the cultural festival because nobody had ever performed a Nepalese song.
To Shrestha, this dance meant a lot to her.
“It means a lot because I had to represent my country in front of a lot of people, and probably so many people didn’t even know what (country) Nepal was,” Shrestha said.
Other countries such as India, Africa and Venezuela also performed dances to showcase their culture.
Quinciñera Dresses
Female students representing Mexico wore their quinceñera dresses.
These dresses are detailed and are styled as ball gowns, ranging in various colors, with elaborate decorative details like lace and beads.
Sophomore Mayte Abarca Rodriguez wore her quinceañera dress in the fashion show. 
To her, this was a way for SHS to see Mexican culture and to show her dresses.
“It’s very (exciting) to me, people can see Mexico and everything, things about (it).” Rodriguez said.
Baile Sorpresa
Students representing Mexico performed a Baile Sorpresa, a dance typically seen in quinceñeras.
They blended traditional and modern Mexican dance styles, including huapango, norteñas, cumbia and tribal.
The group hoped the audience enjoyed Mexico’s diverse dances and learned about their culture through movement and music.
“We thought that would be hype and hype up the crowd,” sophomore Erika Torres said. “And make sure that the audience doesn’t get bored.”
Students prepared and practiced for this dance weekly during iPASS.
For the performers, participating was a way to have fun and share their culture with the school.
“It was a way to represent my culture to other people and share it to the school,” Torres said.
While all of these performances were different, they connect students to understand the diversity and uniqueness behind each culture at SHS.
“A lot of our population here at Southport High School is very diverse,” sponsor for the Mexican dance group Millie Delgado Gonzalez said. “And so this gives us an example or a way for them to be included and for everybody to see their culture … ”
