Performers from various cultures share how Fiji Club welcomed them like family
Having people from other cultures in the Fiji Club strengthens Fijians because it “helps us look outside the box,” said Paula Taukei, an exercise sports science major from Fiji.
Taukei, who is a senior, shared, “The main purpose of the club is to be diverse because when you have only Fijians inside [the club], it doesn’t grow. Growth comes when you’re not in your comfort zone.”
Cultural inclusion represents Fiji
“Having diversity within a culture just hones in on the idea of unity,” said Blake Collier, a junior from Arizona majoring in social work. She explained looking at a group of people who share the same culture and understand one another “is something special.”
Taukei explained Fiji is a diverse country, so the presidency of the club worked hard to portray the concept of diversity through Culture Night. “When it comes to Culture Night practice, we must always remember we’re representing Fiji,” he said.
When Collier joined Fiji Club, she said she worried about not being able to represent the culture well, but she said the choreographers “have been so good at realizing we’re all coming from different places and have broken it down to [help us] not only excel but also feel like we’re a part of the family.”
Collier said the choreographers were excited to share their culture and dances with her, and this acceptance and welcoming environment surprised her. “I was expecting it to be harder to mesh into a culture I’ve never been a part of. But it was seamless and easy. They wanted me to be there.”
Taukei said seeing a diverse group of students dancing for Fiji helped the audience realize that they can also be part of the club and participate in cultural dances, even if they might have previously thought otherwise.
Sharing the spotlight
Brooke Dutro, a sophomore from the Big Island of Hawaii majoring in hospitality and tourism management, said the inclusion of other ethnicities and cultures was seen through the placement of the dancers. “They don’t just put all the Fijians in the front,” she said.
Taukei explained the placement of the Culture Night dancers was based on the students’ dedication and participation in practice rather their cultural background. Each person who was in the front deserved the spot because, “Hard work beats talent,” he said, quoting a common Fijian saying.
Collier said she noticed certain cultures were not singled out to do the easier parts of the dance. Fiji Club leaders expected each dancer to step up “because they trust in other cultures,” she explained.
Many students, including Fijians, attended practices early, Taukei said, to recall moves they had not yet perfected. He complimented the club members on their diligence in dancing in synchrony, and shared that audience members might have even thought all of the performers were Fijian because of their matching movements.
Unity through chanting
Taukei stated the first three Culture Night practices in Fiji Club were spent doing get-to-know-you games where members were encouraged to stand beside and talk to people other than their friends. These games created lasting friendships, so members could help each other catch up if they missed a practice later, said Taukei.
Each practice began with a chant, called Nai Ucu ni meke, which is used in Fijian dances to prepare performers with the energy and motivation to dance. Taukei explained the chant is “to unify everyone.”
Collier said opening the performance with everyone coming together to sing the chant showed the inclusion and unity of the club. “[Neither] a person [nor] a group [is] being highlighted to open the show. It’s the whole club being the focus of the whole performance.”
Kelera Uluiviti, a freshman from Fiji majoring in accounting, said during practice, “It wasn’t just the Fijians working together but also all the other cultures dancing. ... We’re all just united, dancing the same move.”
She shared something she loved about Fiji Club was how willing every member was to help one another. Upon learning that a club member needed to fly home due to the death of a loved one, Uluiviti said Fiji Club members pitched in financially in any way they could to help the person book the flight back home to Fiji.