Cultural knowledge, entertainment focuses of first ever Korea Night

When junior Josh Kim walked down Kirkwood Avenue with a camera crew, he asked Bloomington residents and IU students Korean trivia. He was surprised when most had no answers. \n"(The video) actually opened my eyes to a lot of different things," Kim said. "I was pretty naïve, but hearing some of the responses I realized different cultures need to get their names out there." \nKim shot the video to be shown at the first annual Korea Night, held Saturday in the Willkie Auditorium.\nThe purpose of Korea Night was to bridge the East and West and put Korean culture on the IU map, all in a light-hearted manner. An estimated 500 people came out to explore Korea through performances in Tae Kwon Do, fan dancing, break dancing and Korean punk music. \nThe video was a particular hit, eliciting waves of laughter.\nKim, the event's co-master of ceremonies, helped put together the video of himself asking unlucky victims of the Bloomington community questions about Korean culture. Kim asked questions like "What is the capital of Korea?" or "what are Koreans most known for?" Few students he asked appeared to know. One particularly relevant question was "Where do you see Koreans most on campus?" People answered seriously Tulip Tree Apartments, the library and class. \nKim said he realizes, however, that accepting different cultures works both ways. \n"Koreans need to learn American culture," Kim said. "You know you can't be Korean, or always American, you need to (assimilate)." \nKorea Night Co-emcee and junior Mallory Burns, a Caucasian, said she felt that Koreans are the Asian underdogs at IU.\n"The Koreans really haven't had a chance to shine and I think they're getting tired of it," Burns said after the show. "They're like, 'This is our year, we're ready to kick butt, we're ready to go out there and show them what we've got.'"\nKorea Night not only worked to bridge the gap between Korea and IU, but also to bridge the gap between traditional Korean culture and modern society. The tae kwon do performance included kicking drills, demonstrations of self-defense and breaking wood and cement. \nTuk Gong Mu Sul, a form of military combat fighting, included displays of actual sparring and breaking through eight layers of cement. It also featured one man breaking cement with his head while leaping over four people crouched on the ground. \nThe Korean fan dancing was set to traditional Korean music, with women wearing Hambok -- a traditional garment -- and dancing in formation with the fans. Burns was part of the performance and was enthusiastic about it.\n"I got to be immersed in the culture without actually going to the country," she said. "I was with these girls day and night. We have been practicing for a month straight. I had never held a fan before, and to go out there and do that with confidence just made my life. I felt so honored that I had an opportunity to do that." \nA group of elementary-aged children from Bloomington Korean School also performed "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star," in both Korean and in English. In the Samulnori performance, eight drummers played different types of drums, all representing different forms of weather. \nThe evening ended with the "emocore and punk rock" band Rock & Soul playing songs that many members of the audience recognized, including a "punk" version of the Korean national anthem.\nJunior Cathy Litaker, who is half-Korean, said it is important for events like Korea Night to take place.\n"It's really great," Litaker said. "People get to see a different side of other people's lives from around the world." \nMoosup Lee, vice president of the Korean Undergraduate Student Association, was also enthusiastic about the success of the first-ever Korea Night. \n"Koreans are the No. 1 international population on campus," Lee said. "Tonight was to promote Korean culture. A lot of people here in Bloomington aren't aware of Korean culture. Before today, I don't think a lot of people knew about (it)." \nKim agreed and added the event could be the beginning of change. \n"I think it's the beginning of a new establishment at IU," Kim said. "I came here thinking IU was pretty diverse, but this is a pretty good foundation to start something pretty big. I think all the minorities are really starting to make a move around here, and it's just making IU a more diverse campus"