High School Celebrates Cultures of the World

To some, lunchtime at Chatsworth High School on Friday might have looked like a Generation X production of “It’s a Small World,” Walt Disney’s singsong ode to cultures around the globe.

In fact, it was the school’s annual International Day, a day of celebrating differences with song, dance and food.

“At first we were like, ‘Wow, everyone’s going to make fun of us,’ ” said 17-year-old Michelle George, who performed a traditional Yugoslavian kolo dance in costume with classmates Lindsey Kops, Jessica Wood and sister Pamela George.

Instead, the group was met with hearty applause from several hundred students gathered around the school’s outdoor stage. “That was so cool,” Robert Roig gushed afterward. “I really dug that.”

As Lindsey explained, “We don’t feel dumb. We feel very respected.”

Organized by student leaders Elwyn John and Fernando Cazares, the hourlong multicultural concert also featured dances from Hawaii and India as well as songs from a number of singers such as Larcarol Wood, who ended the hour with a passionate gospel ballad. Several school clubs participated by selling ethnic foods and urging older students to register to vote.

Courtney Barles, 18, who danced a Hawaiian rockhula clad only in a bikini top and silvery, fringed skirt, said despite the large turnout she wasn’t self-conscious about performing in front of her peers.

“I love dancing in front of people,” she said, adding that she’s been doing it for seven years. For Barles, it’s an opportunity to present an art that many people have only witnessed on television or in movies.

“A lot of people don’t know about hula dancing,” she said. “I’m able to bring that culture to them.”