Asian Festival Begins Tonight

A group of undergraduates has been taking a crash course in Korean fan dancing for the past two weeks in preparation for a one-line-only performance at an annual Asian culture festival on campus.

They will join more than 35 members of Chinese, Japanese and Korean undergraduate organizations in an evening of musical performances, poetry readings, and dramatic suits at the fourth annual Asian Cultural Festival which begins this evening at 8 p.m. in the Leverett House dining hall.

Other performers include Joshua P. Bogen '88 and Charlotte M. McKee '86 who will demonstraic kendo, a Japanese martial art similar to competitive fencing.

Janice Lee '86, vice-president of the Asian American Association, said the purpose of the event is two-fold: "Not only does [this festival] allow the community around us to be aware of our culture, but it also allows the different Asian groups on campus to interact and get to know each other."

Festival coordinator David M. Lin '86, said that it was important to show Asian students at Harvard "the incredibly rich array of culture that's available to them that some may have ignored or forgotten."

An art gallery featuring students' works will be on display before the beginning of the show and during intermission. Chinese pastries imported from Chinatown will be served during a fifteen-minute in termission.

"People view Japan, for example, entirely in terms of the business world or Theory / or Theory X. To better understand, you need to know the culture behind it," Bogen said.

Seating is limited to 200 and 130 presale tickets have already been old A dance lasting from 10 to 1 a.m. will follow the two hours of performance.