A man and a woman stand on a platform, palms raised. Slowly, rhythmically, they raise their feet and step into each other.
Dances like this one, the Sayan sa Bangko, were performed by 19 ASU organizations and professional dance troupes Thursday at the fifth annual Culture Fusion Night on the Tempe campus. The event was held to raise awareness about different cultures at ASU.
“It’s a different mix of different cultures bringing what they do best,” S.T.E.P. president and biological science senior Niko Preciado said.
Students from different cultures and backgrounds gathered to watch the event, which was sponsored by Students Toward Educational Progress, or S.T.E.P., a nonprofit ASU organization that aims to raise cultural awareness, promote student success and contribute to the community.
Philippine American Student Association member and biological sciences junior Lauren Doctolero performed the Sayan sa Bangko, a traditional Filipino dance that tells the story of boy meets girl.
“I wanted to be more connected with my culture, and this is one way to do it,” said Doctolero, who has been a member of the association since her freshman year.
The event was S.T.E.P.’s biggest of the year and attracted over 300 students, Preciado said.
The event began with both the national anthem and the black national anthem, which was originally performed in 1900 in honor of Abraham Lincoln’s birthday.
Culture Fusion Night had a wide variety of performers, including Hawaiian and Hip Hop dancers, Christian singers and slam poets. S.T.E.P. hired professional dancers from organizations like The Fiesta Mexicana Dance Company to perform along with the many ASU cultural clubs that contributed.
Many students start with cultural organizations like the Philippine American Student Association and S.T.E.P. to connect with new cultures and other students.
“We like to think of it as a network that you’re going to experience at ASU because it’s a big campus so you kind of get lost in it,” Preciado said.
Kinesiology junior and programming director for S.T.E.P. Stephanie Chayrez had been planning the event since July, and not only coordinated all the dancers and entertainment, but participated in a stepping dance for Lambda Theta Nu Sorority.
The stepping dance involved machetes to symbolize women in power within the Latino culture.
S.T.E.P. opened Culture Fusion Night to Greek organizations for the first time this year because many members of S.T.E.P. are Greek-affiliated, Chayrez said.
Many Greek organizations attended the event to support culture and student community.
Latino studies senior Bianca Chavez and communications senior Rose Bello of Gamma Alpha Omega Sorority attended.
Gamma Alpha Omega is a multicultural organization based on community service.
Chavez said one of her favorite dance groups was the Hawaii and Pacific Islander club.
“One thing that caught my attention was the fact that there were Greeks and non-Greeks, and because I’m Greek I want to see the other aspects at ASU,” Chavez said, referring to Greek life.
S.T.E.P. is the only honors multicultural organization offered to students who do not have to join a sorority.
“The diversity in S.T.E.P. opens your eyes to everything on the ASU campus,” Chayrez said. “I really think that if I didn’t join this organization I wouldn’t be where I am today.”
Reach the reporter at hhuskins@asu.edu
