Vietnamese culture met American pop music Saturday night as members of the Vietnamese Student Association took the stage to put a unique twist on a classic fairy tale.
For its 35th Annual Family Night, the VSA staged a musical in the Hoff Theater called Cinderella – A Vietnamese Tale, which followed the basic Cinderella storyline while incorporating songs by several pop music artists, including Maroon 5, Justin Bieber and Lady Gaga. The event also featured a fashion show, musical performances by students, and comedic videos, all of which celebrated Vietnamese-American heritage.
“We are changing things up a little bit this year,” program director and senior finance and supply chain management major Chi Nguyen said. “The main purpose of our annual culture show is to celebrate Vietnamese culture, encourage young Vietnamese-Americans to learn about their own heritage and introduce our heritage to the American audience.”
Set in Vietnam, the musical’s story followed a Cinderella character named Tammy as she defied her evil stepmother to attend a parade. She met and fell in love with the prince only to lose her shoe as she fled. The evil stepmother then killed Tammy by having her climb a tree and then chopping it down. During that scene, Tammy’s evil stepsister Cammie sang “50 Ways to Say Goodbye” by Train.
In another musical number, the prince sang Ne-Yo’s “Because of You” when he realized that he had lost Tammy. Meanwhile, Tammy is reincarnated as a bird only to be killed by her stepmother once again. The story ends with the prince finding Tammy in her second reincarnated form — an apple.
Saria Rudolph, a sophomore Japanese major, said she enjoyed watching the creative spin on the story.
“I like how they incorporated traditional Vietnamese clothing, and put that little touch of modern music and culture into it,” Rudolph said.
During the fashion show segment, California designer Tuan Kien Nguyen showcased T-shirts with Vietnamese prints while George Washington University student Frank Huynh had models hit the runway wearing his modern-chic designs with fun patterns. A third designer, Fashion Institute of Technology student Cheryl Mia Kao’s, showed off designs that Chi Nguyen described as “conceptual and unexpected.” One of Kao’s dresses, for example, featured Christmas lights attached to it.
During the show, members also collected donations for the Medical, Educational Missions and Outreach nonprofit, which provides Hepatitis B screenings for Vietnamese orphans and pregnant mothers as well as vaccinations.
Several students, including non-Vietnamese Americans, said they found plenty to enjoy at the event.
“The show had a good mix of Vietnamese culture and modern music, which helped me relate,” junior electrical engineering major Jacob Chen said.
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