Last modified: Wednesday, October 24, 2012
2012 World's Fare will celebrate cultures of IU Bloomington's international students
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Oct. 24, 2012
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- More than 20 international student groups at Indiana University Bloomington will showcase their countries with an array of cultural displays, international food and traditional performances at the sixth annual IU World's Fare on Friday, Nov. 2.
Aditi Chitali from the Association for India's Development performs a traditional dance from her home country.
The IU Office of International Services and IU Union Board again are partnering to coordinate the event in celebration of International Education Week. Doors will open to the public at 5 p.m. at the IU Auditorium, 1211 E. Seventh St.
Visitors will be greeted by the lively music of Brazil. Performing will be Brazil Pandeiro, a new quartet of students from the IU Jacobs School of Music who primarily focus on typical styles such as Choro and Bossa Nova. They feature a great variety of Brazilian composers such as Villa Lobos, Jobim, Pixinguinha and Jacob do Bandolim.
Two members, Rodrigo Almeida and Daniel Duarte, also form the Villa Guitar Duo and together have won prestigious guitar and chamber music competitions in Europe, the United States and Latin America, including the Ninth European Guitar Competition, the Souza Lima guitar competition and Musicalis guitar competition. The duo was the only guitar ensemble ever to receive an honorary mention at the third international Chamber Music Ensemble Competition hosted by the Chamber Music Foundation of New England. Other members are Bruno Cabreira and Felipe Brito.
International student groups will be showing their creativity through cultural displays. Each booth will represent a different country, providing an opportunity for visitors to become familiar with a number of cultures while interacting with the international students. Performances by the student groups will add to the festivities.
Visitors will have an opportunity to sample and enjoy international food throughout the evening. All recipes for the food were submitted by the international students and prepared by IMU Dining Services staff.
A member of the Kazakh Student Association in traditional clothing from her home country.
"It is amazing to me to see the interest in cultural diversity, not only among the campus community, but also among people from Bloomington and beyond," said Sandy Britton, associate director for international student life at IU Bloomington. "This event keeps on growing ... When people come around to the cultural displays, there is that interaction and connection between them and our students, and our students really enjoy it. It's a lot of fun."
Britton said the international students put a lot of effort into highlighting their countries' cultures and take pride in sharing that knowledge with others. She said many students have told her how much the World's Fare means, giving them an opportunity to raise awareness about where they are from.
Faculty, staff, students and members of the Bloomington community are welcome to join the festivities. There is no admission fee for IU students who show their university-issued identification card. Non-students can purchase a ticket at the door for $4, which entitles the holder to sample eight different international dishes.
The event will end at 8 p.m. with awards given for first, second and third places to the best performances and cultural displays. The Office of International Services also will introduce winners of the International Student and Scholar Photo Contest.
More information about the International Education Week celebration worldwide is available on the State Department website. More information about the IEW programs and activities at IU is available from the IU Office of International Services.
