S.J. Preston Elementary Celebrates A Multitude of Cultures

The students and their families celebrated the many cultures that exist in the Samuel J. Preston Elementary school community with an evening of food and fun. The evening began with a smorgasbord of delectable dishes in the multipurpose room – a lovely way to bring together friends and neighbors over tasty treats.

The crowd headed to the auditorium where every seat was filled as well as all of the standing-room-only spots to see the students perform. The concert began with members of the Musical Theater Club singing Funga Alafia, Peace Round, and Si, Se Peude.

Two students performed the high-energy French dance that dated back to the 1840s and other students performed a medley of Bollywood dances.

The next performance consisted of an Albanian dance known as Shota. The proper Albanian name of this dance is Vallja e shotes, meaning the dance of the duck.

In a highlight of the evening (and almost all of the Preston Multicultural Night events) is the performance of the Sirtaki – a Greek dance choreographed by Giorgos Provias for the 1964 film Zorba the Greek. It is a recent Greek folkdance that mixes the slow and fast versions of the hasapiko dance and is performed by third grade students along with Preston teacher Helen Karasoulas.

The Sirtaki was followed by another Albanian dance known as the Kuq E Zi – a dance typically performed while wearing the country’s national colors of red and black.

The Assamese Folk Dance, a traditional Indian folk dance, is often performed at festivals and brings together many different types of people, regardless of background. The performances ended with a beautiful performance by two sisters of the Sound of Music’s German show tune – Edelweiss. The song is named after the edelweiss – a white flower found high in the Alps.

The evening was completed with a fashion show of cultural attire and was set to the song Hello to all the Children of the World.