The cultural climate at Harvard has changed significantly since the early 80s, according to Rios, who said she was overwhelmed by the diversity and talent of the student-organized events that take place every year in Sanders Theatre following the reception for the guest of honor.

“It’s amazing to see how far diversity has come at Harvard,” she said. “I remember when we were putting this together 20 years ago, we brought in the Opportunes and some of the other a cappella groups. That was the version of culture, that was the way there was entertainment for the student body.”

Not only has diversity itself seemed to have flourished at the event itself, according to Rios, but also a greater sense of pride seems to have developed among performers, who are eager to share their culture and serve as emissaries of different corners of the world for the public.

“Diversity has changed so much. Back then, it seemed like a bit of a struggle to be able to share something like that with the public, and now it’s something that people are proud of. They want to do it. They’re very proactive about it, they wear it, they embrace it. They don’t touch it, they embrace it,” Rios said.

Throughout the student show at Sanders Theatre after his reception in Kirkland House, George Lopez was an active participant in his capacity as host, but also danced with the performers and cracked jokes.

After the show, he said, “The performance was absolutely fantastic. We went through the whole world in two hours.”

Lopez said he is a big fan of programs such as Cultural Rhythms, for students and the country as a whole. “I just think that as a country we need to get to where the rest of the world is,” he said. He continued to say that Cultural Rhythems is a step in the right direction towards the world’s positive acceptance of diversity

“I feel that ignorance is probably the biggest enemy and ignorance comes in all colors,” he added.

COLLEGE CULTURE

Thrilling is the word many audience members used to describe the show itself—which featured 18 performances by undergraduate cultural groups, ranging from the Fuerza Latina’s Spanish dancing, to a wushu demonstration, ‘bhangra’ or a traditional Indian folk dance, and a mariachi performance.

The groups themselves brought to the stage diverse backgrounds and histories as campus organizations—from long-standing and prominent organizations such as the Kuumba Singers and the Ballet Folklorico de Aztlan, which has been in existence for 33 years and has performed in numerous Cultural Rhythm shows, to the fresh-faced Lithuanian Club, which was started just last semester.

“We decided it would be fun to spread our culture around Harvard to our friends who always ask us ‘Who are you? Why are your names so weird?’” laughed Lina O. Sestokas ’05, one of the Lithuanian Club’s founders.

Sestokas says she began preparing for the event before winter break, and started the rehearsal process shortly after Intercession.

Though she and fellow performers Thomas E. Mikuckis ’07 and Maria L. Domanskis ’05 traveled to Lithuania last summer to participate in a national folk dance festival there, she admitted before the performance that she was still nervous to be performing in front of such a large crowd.

But the audience was enthusiastic throughout the event—bursting out in applause for every group, clapping along with the music to support performers and even standing up to sing with the Kuumba singers.