5, 6, 7, 8: DIRECT FROM AADT: EASTBOUND 2008 Highlights

EASTBOUND 2008 had even greater diversity and difficulty in dance styles than ever before, featuring modern Chinese dance, Peking Opera style dance, fusion, Japanese, Mongolian, martial, Dai minority, modern sword technique, hip-hop, lyrical, and modern ribbon. With guest performances from the Harvard Breakers Organization, the Harvard Philippine Forum, South Asian Dance Company, and Harvard Wushu, EASTBOUND 2008 did not fail to WOW the audience.

The audience was as encouraging as it was large, screaming dancers’ names at the start of each piece, laughing along with hosts, Nworah Ayogu ’10 and Felix Zhang ’11, and waving around posters with dancers’ names. The hip hop medley finale was particularly awe-inspiring because the biggest EASTBOUND 2008 cast from freshmen to graduate students ran onto stage to take their final bow.

EASTBOUND was a wonderful experience for all. Brian Na '09, an enthusiastic EASTBOUND audience member gushed, "EASTBOUND is a great cultural smorgasbord that features really talented people. It's also really great to see all of your friends. You know they work really hard and it's truly inspiring to see the fruits of their hard work."
-Brian Na ‘09

As usual, EASTBOUND always represents something extra special for our newbies and seniors.

"I never danced a step before AADT and now I can do something!"
-Kate Xie ‘10

Melodies of Mongolia

"As EASTBOUND 2008 came around the corner, the last-minute rehearsals, scrambling to find the right hair and flower accessories, and flurries of panicked email chains were all too familiar. This was my fourth EASTBOUND...of course I knew how to handle it like a pro, right? Actually...WRONG! I freaked out more about this EASTBOUND than any EASTBOUND before. I was literally hyperventilating as the clock ticked closer and closer to how time and I STILL had not put on enough blush and black eyeliner yet. I was so nervous because more of my friends and family came to this EASTBOUND than any EASTBOUND before, and it would be my very last undergrad performance in Lowell Lecture Hall. But once the house lights dimmed, there was no stopping the dynamism that is always EASTBOUND. It was so exciting to perform for such a packed house and it was so gratifying to show them all my four years of work."
-Vivien Wu ‘08

The end of EASTBOUND gave AADT a short period of rest from performances, but EASTBOUND’s popularity quickly spread across campus and AADT was invited to perform at several unconventional events including the Woodbridge Society’s Grand Fiesta, Tuesday Magazine’s prefrosh orientation, Identities Fashion Show, and Pforzheimer House’s Spring Formal. AADT closed the year with a reprise of both He Tang Yue Se and Fusion at ARTS First, a Cambridge-wide celebration of the arts on May 2, 2008.

And by the end of the year, AADT Love was all-around! Although AADT 2007-2008 was stressful, AADT can celebrate another year of tremendous growth and success. Congratulations to everyone!