By Emma Zaremba
Features Assignment Editor
Students shed light on Indian culture during this year’s Diwali show, “You’ve Been Conned,” hosted by students of Asian Students in Action (ASIA). The group provided the Bonaventure community with the opportunity to dip into a different culture Tuesday night in the Regina A. Quick Center for the Arts.
Diwali, or the festival of lights, is a Hindu celebration that takes place over a five-day period. For those who celebrate this holiday, it’s one of the most important festivals of the year and is celebrated between family with traditional activities at home.
The production, which began at 7 p.m., consisted of a Disney-like storyline mixed with exotic Bollywood dancing, all performed by members of ASIA.
A young, dream-driven girl (sophomore Kourtney McCorry) deserted her hometown with the hope of achieving stardom. She was ill-prepared for the world of fame, however, and hit some bumps along the way. During this journey, she crossed paths with a boy (junior Kenny Nguyen) who helped her con people into giving them their money so they could both succeed.
Additional stand-out roles were performed by junior Ramamahesh Seeni and senior Ambika Sharma.
Kevin Rogers, a senior political science and journalism and mass communication major, and Kevin Cooley, senior English and sociology major, stood as the masters of ceremonies for the production. Their quirky partnership and running jokes eased the awkward scene transitions by keeping the audience attentive and cheerful.
Like many, sophomore philosophy major Joe Ferencik wasn’t sure what to expect before attending the show.
“I was expecting either a comedy or dance show somehow combined with a celebration of the Hindu holiday,” Ferencik said. “All I knew was Diwali is somehow religious, Kevin Cooley and Kevin Rogers were going to emcee and there would be a lot of dancing from ASIA and the SBU Hip Hop team.”
Laura Peterson, music lecturer, had experienced the celebration before, so she knew more of what would happen than advertisements revealed.
“I’ve seen ASIA perform before, so my expectations were met — lots of dancing and emcees for comic relief,” Peterson said.
The performance was divided into separate elements that each played vital roles, some of which stood out more than others.
“The dancing stands out to me,” Peterson said. “I’m always impressed by the amount of time and effort the students put into the show to learn the choreography.”
Ferencik agreed the unique form of dance executed by the club members captured his attention.
“What stood out most to me was the traditional Indian dancing,” Ferencik said. “I rarely see it performed, so it was unique for me to watch the Bollywood-style dance numbers on stage.”
Sophomore education major Maggie Schunk shared similar feelings.
“The dancing was definitely my favorite part, especially the last number,” Schunk said. “There was so much energy on stage and I’ll definitely be attending again.”
While some attendees went to support their friends, others ventured over out of curiosity.
“I chose to attend the show because I wanted to see something new from another culture that I’ve never encountered before,” Ferencik said.
Enthralling music highlighted the various dances, so for those with a background in music, being at the show was especially intriguing.
“I’m a musician, so watching the dancing and hearing the music is always entertaining,” Peterson said. “I also have several students in the show and I like to support them.”
It was evident to audience members that ASIA’s intent was to celebrate Diwali with their peers in a form of entertainment that would be hard to forget.
“I like seeing students who are passionate about the arts,” Peterson said. “They always seem to have a great time, despite the amount of work they’re doing and the extra time commitment they’ve taken on.”
The students involved in the production did more than put on a show, they helped their peers to better understand traditions with the on-stage portion of the event as well as the off-stage portion. After the show, guests were treated to an array of cultural foods as long as they held on to their ticket stubs.
“I found it interesting to celebrate a festival not through a screenplay, but through a plot, characters and a script. I think I understood Hindu and Indian traditions a little better after the show than I did before,” Ferencik said.
Dance captain Aayushi Sardana, a junior, commented on the hard work each member put into this production.
“The whole ASIA executive board has worked extremely hard on putting on this amazing show, from coordinating, costumes, music, dance, routines, scripts and even catering food for after the show so that students, faculty and the nearby community could get the whole experience,” Sardana said. “This event gets bigger and bigger every year. We had the most people come to our show this year, and we hope we can attract even more to come next year.”
