On February 14, Boston Latin School Vietnamese Student Society (VSS) celebrated the Year of the Snake with their highly anticipated Tet Festival.
The Lunar New Year celebration is “the event [they] plan for, [their] trademark,” according to co-president Ava Vu (I). It consisted of many moving parts, starting in the Dining Hall with a lion dance from Kwong Kow Athletics. Attendees then played games where participants earned stamps, and upon completion, they could trade in their stamped slip for a variety of prizes. Attendees also enjoyed karaoke, a watermelon-eating contest and photo shoot opportunities.
Following the Dining Hall portion of the event was the performance portion in the auditorium, featuring powerful dances from BLS Dance Club, BLS KOREO and BLS Breakers and soothing vocals from bands Zebra Therapy and Freshies.
The event culminated in a large dinner in the Dining Hall, which was provided by officers and local Vietnamese restaurants.
Considerable attention also went into the displays of dancing skill on the part of the clubs, showcasing their talents at Tet. KOREO officer and performer Natalie Nguyen (III) shares, “We had meetings for maybe like an hour and a half every week every Wednesday, [and we] started preparing around November.”
Though it is an annual festival, the event constantly evolves over the years. VSS officer Tiana Nguyen (III), who served on the games committee, explains the process: “We [will] borrow [games] from previous years [and] we take a lot of [inspirations] from old [ones].”
Tet Festival is not the only major event for the VSS, though, with Cà Phê Day also being a well-known tradition. Held in the Dining Hall, this is when the club sells traditional Vietnamese coffee. The money from this event helps fund Tet, and the cycle is continued into the next year’s events.
The celebration of Tet is a fixture of the BLS community’s pride and joy and will continue to be a staple event at the School, having already been held here for over 20 years. With the debriefing for this year’s Tet already having been held, the planning process will start to repeat itself next school year. VSS is already looking forward to next year’s events and participants, new or returning. Be sure to keep a lookout for VSS’s traditional fan dance performance with BLS South East Asian Leaders on Asian Night! On February 14, Boston Latin School Vietnamese Student Society (VSS) celebrated the Year of the Snake with their highly anticipated Tet Festival.
The Lunar New Year celebration is “the event [they] plan for, [their] trademark,” according to co-president Ava Vu (I). It consisted of many moving parts, starting in the Dining Hall with a lion dance from Kwong Kow Athletics. Attendees then played games where participants earned stamps, and upon completion, they could trade in their stamped slip for a variety of prizes. Attendees also enjoyed karaoke, a watermelon-eating contest and photo shoot opportunities.
Following the Dining Hall portion of the event was the performance portion in the auditorium, featuring powerful dances from BLS Dance Club, BLS KOREO and BLS Breakers and soothing vocals from bands Zebra Therapy and Freshies.
The event culminated in a large dinner in the Dining Hall, which was provided by officers and local Vietnamese restaurants.
Considerable attention also went into the displays of dancing skill on the part of the clubs, showcasing their talents at Tet. KOREO officer and performer Natalie Nguyen (III) shares, “We had meetings for maybe like an hour and a half every week every Wednesday, [and we] started preparing around November.”
Though it is an annual festival, the event constantly evolves over the years. VSS officer Tiana Nguyen (III), who served on the games committee, explains the process: “We [will] borrow [games] from previous years [and] we take a lot of [inspirations] from old [ones].”
Tet Festival is not the only major event for the VSS, though, with Cà Phê Day also being a well-known tradition. Held in the Dining Hall, this is when the club sells traditional Vietnamese coffee. The money from this event helps fund Tet, and the cycle is continued into the next year’s events.
The celebration of Tet is a fixture of the BLS community’s pride and joy and will continue to be a staple event at the School, having already been held here for over 20 years. With the debriefing for this year’s Tet already having been held, the planning process will start to repeat itself next school year. VSS is already looking forward to next year’s events and participants, new or returning. Be sure to keep a lookout for VSS’s traditional fan dance performance with BLS South East Asian Leaders on Asian Night!