When the kickoff rally for Festival of Nations (FON) took place in December, preparations for Chinese Ribbon had already been underway. This year, leaders Emily Yan, Emily Tan, Sandy Wong, and Julia Xia began preparing in the summer by choosing songs and costumes, making ribbons, and choreographing dances.
With less time between the start of FON and performances, no cut auditions were held the week right after the rally. Practices immediately began on January 6.
With the start of a new FON season, the new leaders stepped up to live up to both their own goals and the legacy left behind. “We hope that we can continue the legacy last year’s leaders left behind and we hope all our members… will want to join again next year,” expressed senior Emily Tan.
With a similar mindset, senior Emily Yan voiced that she wishes to “put on a fun and exciting show and live up to the amazing ribbon performances from last year. Most of all I want everyone to have fun and be proud of the work they’ve done over the last two months.”
Many new members joined for various reasons, resulting in the “greatest number of members Chinese Ribbon FON has ever had.” Many shared that they joined to learn more about the culture and its traditional dances, while others joined because of friends.
Sophomore Isabelle Borgstedt expressed that she “did K-FON last year and wanted to try a new FON every year to experience the culture.” Freshman Erica Lee also joined this year since “the culture that I come from is [represented, which is] why I wanted to join ribbon, and ribbon gives me the opportunity to embrace my nationality to a larger extent.”
“My friends were all joining [ribbon which made me also want to join] but I [also] wanted to learn more about my culture as I have never done any Chinese dances before,” expressed sophomore Crystal Lin. Sophomore Alexandra Yick also voiced, “My friends joined and I saw last year, but since I was on the basketball team I never had the time to join FON. [This year I] immediately signed up for Chinese Ribbon.”
Whether one joins to experience diverse cultures or to spend time with friends, Chinese Ribbon FON is a place for all. “The energy and excitement for this FON has been carried down all these years, and I know that it will continue to stay this way,” said Emily. Keep an eye out for Chinese Ribbon FON during the showcase on February 28 and 29.
