Thai doesn’t refer to the island of Taiwan. This is one of the many lessons that were taught Friday at Thai Night, Northwestern’s Thai Club’s annual cultural show.
This year’s Thai Night, titled “Thailand Demystified,” showcased Thai cultural dances, music and food for about 150 people at Fisk Hall.
It was aimed at educating NU students and Evanston residents about Thailand and its culture and at clearing up common misconceptions. The show’s hosts addressed the impression some movies give that the country is full of palm trees, when palm trees are not native to Thailand.
The night included lessons in customs and mannerisms, as well as a Thai kickboxing demonstration.
“I didn’t really think that Thai culture was so closely connected to Indian culture and then I went to Thai night and found out that it was a lot of the music had Indian beats and a lot of the last names had Sanskrit roots,” said Shailesh Mittal, a McCormick freshman.
Students performed three traditional Thai dances and a shadow play performance of the Ramakien, which gave a modern twist to the Thai version of the Hindu Ramayana. Brendan Higgins, a McCormick freshman, said he was surprised at how Thai culture blends South Asian and East Asian cultures.
The emcees played clips of an NU student film — “Turn Left, Turn Right,” directed by and featuring Thai Club members — throughout the night.
“Now (Thai Night) is a creative outlet for me,” said McCormick senior Nirand Pisutha-Arnond, one of the movie’s directors. “Because of Thai Night I can express my ideas and stuff and see if people like it.”
This year’s Thai Night marked the last performance of the Thai Club Band, which played modern Thai pop music during the show. The band, mostly composed of graduating seniors, formed when most of its members were freshmen.
“Overall I think it was a bittersweet moment for all of us,” said McCormick senior Jeff Liu, a band member.
Thai Night also sold Thai food and drinks before the show and raised $882, said Narin Pruttivarasin, Thai Night’s chairwoman and a Weinberg freshman. After club members are reimbursed for the cost of food, profits will be donated to tsunami relief efforts, she said.
Higgins said he enjoyed the variety of performances and events featured at Thai Night.
“I was very impressed overall because it’s not that big of a club, but they did a lot of different things,” Higgins said.
Reach Sameera Kumar at [email protected].
