Once again, the Villanova Asia Student Association (ASA) put on a spectacular show with its Asian Expo Showcase. The event was held on the night of Saturday, Feb. 8 in the Villanova Room of the Connelly Center. It celebrated acts based on cultures from all over the continent. This year’s theme for the Expo was Pixar, so the hosts made sure that the production company’s amusing Pixar puns were interspersed throughout the show. 

The night began with the National Anthem, sung by Abbie Cho. This was followed by two Japanese performances: Cameron Scott performed a set of karate forms and Sensi Walsh led the Japanese Algorithm dance to the song “Sanpo” (the opening theme of the anime film “My Neighbor Totoro”), performed by university Japanese classes.

In addition, the Villanova Twirlers performed a routine set to the song “Le Festin” from the film “Ratatouille.” Students from the basic and intermediate Chinese classes put on a skit and sang “Song for Beauty” and “Friends” to celebrate the Year of the Rat. Furthermore, co-ed dance team Superlative performed an all-styles dance inspired by popular trends from the app Tik Tok. The first half closed with Sabrina, Andre and Rachelle, three Filipino-American students, performing the song “She Was Mine” by the famous Filipino YouTubers Jesse Barrera and Al Rafael. Then, the audience proceeded to form a massive line that wrapped around the room to feast on delicious Asian meals. 

The second half began with a fashion show featuring styles from China, Japan, South Korea, Vietnam and the Philippines, and a game show with questions about both Pixar and Asia. Villanova’s Tae Kwon Do Club performed a 10-minute routine full of board breaking, flying kicks and K-pop dances (done to songs such as Boy with Luv by BTS, Bubble Pop by Hyuna, and Hands Up by 2PM). The Vietnamese Students Association (VSA) acted out the folk tale “The Golden Star Fruit Tree.” The all-female a capella group Nothing But Treble (NBT) sang “Human” by Rag’n’bone Man and a mashup of “Just the Way You Are” by Bruno and “Bleeding Love” by Leona Lewis. The final performance of the night was from the ASA Dance Team, which danced to “Clap” by SEVENTEEN, “Hip” by MAMAMOO, “Gashina by Sunmi” and Fire by BTS. 

Simply judging from the audience’s uproarious reactions to performances, the night was a tremendous success. Many students may have left with a newfound appreciation for Asian martial arts, music and culture in general.