University of California Los Angeles - Bruin Life / Southern Campus Yearbook (Los Angeles, CA)

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a worldly Studying for midterms, going to work, partying on Thursday and seeing Yo-Yo Ma perform in Royce Hall on Saturday may have seemed like a somewhat strange string of events for a typical college student, but it was a reality for many students thanks to UCLA Live. UCLA Live presented a diverse array of world-renowned music, dance, theater and spoken word performances to Los Angeles and the rest of Southern California. Since the performances were held in on-campus venues such as Schoenberg Hall, Freud Playhouse, Macgowan Little Theater and Royce Hall, students were able to witness extraordinary talent right at by Ameet Chahall their doorstep. After David Sefton, the current director of UCLA Live, was appointed in 2000, new traditions such as the International Theatre Festival were established and performance records were surpassed. As of 2008, UCLA Live presented about 150 performances a year to audiences of about 125,000 members. Sefton emphasized the importance of performing arts, stating, Exposure to art and artists of the highest quality and innovation raises the bar for the creative life of the city and the academic life of the university. The various performances included representations from , 1 ji «• i

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OU { y ZLQ, With a campus full of diverse students, Bruins sought to Korean Culture Night, held a performance titled Jung. share their cultural experiences through social gatherings The group integrated traditional arts of Korea with a and performances. Culture nights were a major events for delightful romantic comedy, in which a young boy learned most clubs and allowed students to share their appreciation the value of family, independence and life through for their traditions and heritage. Ranging from Armenian the representation of poongmul, a form of Korean culture to Filipino culture, each organization showcased traditional drumming. different aspects of their roots with dancing, music and language. The Vietnamese Student Union (VSU) held the first culture night of the year on Jan. 21. Titled Adrift ... 21 Nam, 2 Lan Biet Xa, the performance presented a story of the resilience of the Vietnamese family despite hardships and turmoil. With months of hard work and preparation, VSU successfully demonstrated the beauty of the Vietnamese culture. After watching the show, second-year environmental studies student Jaimie Lee commented, I really enjoyed the show. I felt the With culture nights scheduled one after another, many students anticipated their consecutive arrivals. After months of planning and weeks of endless practice, it was no surprise that each cultural organizationputonasuccessfulpresentation. Whether it was through traditional customs such as arts and instruments or modern commemoration such as hip hop dance and drama, culture nights celebrated and honored the history, tradition and legacy of each culture. Second-year anthropology student Wayne Tung explained, Culture nights are a great vi ay for the variety of ethnic clubs on campus to showcase to the community not only their talents in performing and groups also gave people a strong sense ot organizing, but also their own interpretation of the Vietnamese culture. rich, complex culture and heritage that they value and Another major culture night, the Nikkei Studen t cherish. Union ' s (NSU) 22nd culture night entitled This With so many opportunities for students to indulge Movement is Ours, commemorated Japanese culture. NSU themselves in different cultures. Bruins eagerly lined up not only awed students with taiko, odori, modern hip-hop at CTO to get free tickets. Annual culture nights not only and drama, but also taught Bruins about past Japanese educated Bruins, but also gave them a sense of pride about culture. In addition, Hanoolim (HOL), the host of their culture. lUl Abom: A student performs a lion dance at the Vietnamese TET festival. Cultural events gave students a chance to express their cultural identity through shows and drama created a strong emotional impact performances. P iotograp idyrmiX.Oao. on the audience. The performance ilso gave people a strong sense of Abne: NSU Modern dazzles the audience with its eye-catching routine, a result of vast amounts of time and e nergy dedicated to choreography and practice. Students from the Bruin Bhangra team put on a show for the UCIA community in the Ackerman Grand Ballroom. The Vietnamese Language and Culture serves traditional Vietnamese food at their New Year ' s Feastival Celebration. These student-produced and student-directed performances attested to the dedication students showed to entertain and educate their peers alraut their respective cultures. PhotoSraphed by Jennifer Wang and Tushar Ranjan. - '

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Ci I thought that it was good to go and it exposed me to stuff I didn ' t know about before, from other cultures. 9k -Kency Nittler, first-year, undeclared student r almost every genre from over 17 different countries. Some of these events included the State Ballet of Georgia, Sierra Leone ' s Refugee All Stars and an Evening vith Garrison Keillor. Another aspect of the UCLA Live was the Sixth Annual International Theatre Festival, which was held from September to December. The festival included performances from groups such as the National Theatre of Scotland and the Royal Shakespeare Company. Yo-Yo Ma, an internationally acclaimed cellist, w hose 15 out of 75 albums were awarded with Grammys, was also able to grace UCLA as part of the UCLA Lives series. He performed at Royce Hall on Nov. 17 as part of his tour that began in October. Kuang-Yui Chen, a fourth-year biochemistry student, was able to experience the awe of Yo-Yo Ma ' s performance in Royce, The concert consisted purely of cello and piano, which seems conventional for classical recitals. The program however, was in no vvay conventional. It included a sonata -written for piano, a tango piece, traditional Brazilian songs, and a sonata for violin and piano, Aren said. Each of these pieces demonstrated the wide-range of Yo-Yo Ma and Kathryn Stott ' s musical talent. Students were able to attend UCLA Live performances at a discounted price thanks to the efforts of the Student Committee for the Arts. In line vith its mission, the committee also presented its own shows and supported other art related student organizations. In addition to bringing the best of the arts to UCLA students, UCLA Live understood the importance of reaching out to the community, regardless of one ' s background. To do so, UCLA Live established Design for Sharing, its outreach program created in 1969 that gave morning perfo rmances for public school students from underprivileged areas as well as music and dance workshops for younger students. By presenting world-class performances, UCLA Live gave members of the community the opportunity to enjoy their favorites of the performing arts and the opportunity to discover new ones. luJ AlioYe; An All Star croons into the microphone onstage in Royce Hall. Members of the Sierra Leone ' s Refugee All Stars play both traditional African instruments along with a keyboard to achieve their unique sound. Holding back the microphone, an All Star dances to a fusion of traditional African music, roots reggae and rhythmic folk. The band released Living Like a Refugee, which showcased some of their earlier field recordings alongside engineered studio numbers. Photoirsphed byhngX.Dao. Left: The Sierra Leone Reguee All Stars acknowledge the crowd at the end of a song. The group ' s upbeat music provided a message for social justice that pointed out the senselessness of war. Ptiotographed by Tung X. Dao.