KASA Show 2023: NU-TRO brings a taste of the retro and the new
Kimberly Espinosa/Daily Senior Staffer
KASA Presents’ opening act is a cover of K-pop group Seventeen’s song “_WORLD.”
May 8, 2023
Northwestern’s Korean American Student Association hosted its annual KASA Show 2023: NU-TRO at the Ryan Family Auditorium on Friday with a special performance from headliner Jae Park, commonly known as eaJ.
NU-TRO, this year’s KASA Show theme, aimed to travel back in time with a fuse of new and retro performances. The show’s programming included a performance by NU’s Taekwondo Club, skits and KASA Presents, which included performances by students, headliner eaJ and a dance by KASA’s 2022-23 exec board.
KASA external president and one of this year’s KASA Show emcees, Weinberg senior Jefferson Xu said the broad theme differs from previous years, when themes were curated around trending shows like the 2021 release of “Squid Game.” This show still played off some recent releases, though.
“We did notice one popular drama (this year), ‘Twenty Five Twenty One.’ It was going back into the historic era,” Xu said. “There are some aspects of the retro theme that you can see throughout the show.”
Pre-recorded skits acted out by KASA members were based on scenes from K-dramas like “Twenty Five Twenty One” and “Reply 1988.” The skits ranged from the romantic to friend dramas, sometimes incorporating songs and dance.
After KASA’s Exec Dance, more students moved toward the stage to see eaJ of former K-rock band DAY6, who is now making his transition from the K-pop scene to the international pop world.
While there was a KASA show last year, Xu said COVID-19 still placed some restrictions on the performance. Last year’s venue was also off campus, so he was excited to have the show held at NU.
This year’s show had 577 attendees, the largest turnout since before the pandemic, according to Xu.
Weinberg freshman Yena Son said KASA was one of the first campus communities she was really interested in being a part of — starting during her college application process.
This year, Son served on the KASA Show Committee and performed with KASA Presents. She and eight other students performed a cover of K-pop group NCT Dream’s “Candy.”
“KASA Show really helped me get closer with a lot of people that I didn’t expect to get close to and I didn’t have the chance to get close to before,” Son said. “It was just really nice being able to gather in general and support each other.”
Preparations for the committee and rehearsals began during Winter Quarter and increased throughout Spring Quarter, Son said.
Weinberg sophomore Jae Choi, another performer for KASA Presents, said participating in the show is a good opportunity to get involved with the KASA community.
“It’s okay if you don’t know what you’re doing,” Choi said. “It’s always fun.”
Choi danced in KASA Presents’ opening group act with a cover of K-pop group Seventeen’s “_World.” Audience members crowded the stage with excitement.
He said he’s excited to expand his role with future KASA Shows and says he’ll likely participate in KASA Show until his senior year.
Xu joined Northwestern as a transfer student during his sophomore year, when KASA had taken a hiatus from hosting the show.
That break has left the group with some lasting logistical challenges around planning the show. However, with robust programming this year, Xu said he hopes the planning process will improve.
“I hope that next year it will continue where we left off,” Xu said. “We have a pretty good foundation.”
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