Organizers of this year's annual Awaaz show hope to meet high expectations by "turning it up" Friday and Saturday night at Page auditorium.
The show's theme, "Let's turn it up," is both a play on the word awaaz, Hindi for voice, and a reflection on South-Asians increased presence in the public eye, said Awaaz co-chair Anshul Haldipur, a senior.
Organizers described this year's show as a "cultural extravaganza," including "lots of lights and colors," traditional and contemporary dance groups and music performances and a skit providing social commentary on community violence.
Co-chair Vikas Agrawal said he couldn't pick a favorite, but expected strong performances from beginning to end.
"People expect that the show's quality is going to go up every year," said Sachin Bansal, Awaaz production council spokesperson. "The bar keeps getting raised."
Featured among the various performing groups are several Bhangra dance troupes.
Bansal described Bhangra as a rowdy folk dance originating in the North Indian state of Punjab involving synchronized acrobatic moves and bright costumes. He said Bhangra's popularity is increasing rapidly on college campuses across the nation.
Duke's official Bhangra dance group, Duke Dhamaka has won several intercollegiate competitions and is among the groups slated to perform. The troupe dances in a traditional style, which Haldipur said characterizes much more of this year's show than in years' past. However, he added that other more contemporary fusion Bhangra groups, such as Beatz II and Bhangra Fever will also perform.
Additionally, a catered dinner will precede the show, offering a variety of South-Asian fare. Both the show and the dinner are free to students and although the dinner is sold out, Haldipur said tickets for the show are still available on the Bryan Center walkway and at the Marketplace.
With the variety of acts and food as evidence, Haldipur recognized the solidarity of South-Asian culture as a major difference between the cultural shows at Duke and other schools.
"What makes our show different is that ours is a showcase of South-Asian culture as opposed to emphasizing one particular group," Haldipur said.
Bansal noted that the participants in the show are not only South-Asian: The leader of the fashion show is East-Asian, and black, Latino and white students will perform in many of the dances.
Performers have been rehearsing for months and planning for the show began in May.
"There is such hard work and dedication that goes into the show.... I'm excited," Bansal said.
He added that there were two purposes to the show--to celebrate and to raise awareness of South-Asian culture on campus.
"It is a means of expressing what it means to be South-Asian at Duke," Bansal said.
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