37th Annual Cultural Rhythms Show: Welcome to the Block Party

“Let us declare this our block.”

So began Harvard College’s Cultural Rhythms Show, organized completely by students and featuring various student cultural groups took place on Saturday, March 25. The bustling, energetic atmosphere was due in part to the full capacity audience: The show — which fused music, dance and culture — was completely sold out. In addition to the student group performances, producer, actress, entrepreneur, and activist Issa Rae was honored by The Harvard Foundation for Intercultural and Race Relations as the 2023 Artist of the Year. Including 11 performances and a conversation with Rae, Cultural Rhythms was a powerful representation of the beauty and strength found on Harvard’s campus.

This Cultural Rhythms was a historic one, as it was the first time it has been led by all Black female directors: Tiffany C. Onyeiwu ’25, Kyla N. Golding ’24, and Hayat A. Hassan ’25. These three created a dynamic celebration that everyone could feel represented in and connected to.

Joelle S. A. Williams ’26, Akua Pokuaa ’26, and Sameerah A. Lawal ’26, who were waiting in line over an hour before doors opened, reflected on their excitement.

“The fact that we have three Black directors is amazing, that's a great step towards equality between not only genders but races, so props to Harvard for that. Obviously there are still a lot of strides to be made,” Lawal said.

“The whole program is a very great way to show the diversity we have at Harvard, and as a Black woman I feel like that’s very inspirational, to see other Black women standing there, sharing their experiences,” Pokuaa added.

In addition to excitement about the directors, there was a great amount of anticipation for the entire program. In particular, Williams was thrilled to see Issa Rae: “[It’s a] crazy experience to have someone like that come to our school,” she said. Furthermore, she also added how much she appreciated The Harvard Foundation’s festivities. “I like how it was a full week of different activities, highlighting different cultures and experiences which accumulates into an event like this.”

Hayat A. Hassan, the Director of Programming and Events of Cultural Rhythms, shared similar sentiments regarding the great amount of intersection of cultural groups on campus. “We have the people, we have the passion, and all we need is to bring that together and truly be visible on campus and reclaim the space — which is what Cultural Rhythms intends to do: To celebrate our culture and come together is our ultimate goal.”

The show started off with an empowering spoken word performance by Remka Nwana ’23, welcoming the audience to “the block party,” and promising a show that personifies “what it means to be real.”

Hosts Nayleth E. Lopez-Lopez ’23 and Santy Mendoza ’23 later explained the theme: “The directors chose the block party theme because they wanted to remind everyone that Cultural Rhythms is so much more than an annual event, it's so much more than a single night where we celebrate how diverse Harvard is. Cultural rhythms is a harmonizing within us,” said Mendoza.

Featured in the first part of the show was Devin Gates & Friends, Harvard College Bhangra, Candela Latin Dance Troupe, UNIQUE: Harvard College Step Team, Harvard Philippine Forum, Harvard Asian American Dance Troupe, and musician Mai Kim Nguyen and Sergio Javier Jara-Reynoso. Every performance left the audience cheering. The show was full of ensembles featuring an impressive collection of instruments, vibrant wardrobes, and emotional dances that told stories of history and love.

Golding, the Director of Production, said she “wanted performers to be seen and their pieces to be felt.”

“I always wanted them to shine in their own right — the lights and stuff are great, but it's about them and what they want the audience to see and know about who they are and where they come from,” said Golding.

After intermission, the Associate Dean for Inclusion and Belonging of Harvard College Alta Mauro and the Senior Director of The Harvard Foundation Sadé Abraham took the stage to introduce and award Issa Rae as Artist of the Year. Every year, the Harvard Foundation for Intercultural and Race Relations and its partner the Office for the Arts invite and award an artist with this extraordinary honor, followed by a conversation on stage.

With Onyeiwu, Golding, and Hassan, Issa Rae took the stage as the first artist to be given the award in person for Cultural Rhythms since 2019. In her talk, she shared wisdom and anecdotes on “identifying with places” and navigating life in her post-grad career. Rae embodied authenticity, as she was vulnerable when sharing her journey of finding her African and African American identity and even comedic when discussing her struggles of figuring out how to adapt to her environments. Rae was subsequently celebrated with a standing ovation.

The show concluded with performances from Omo Naija X The Wahala Boys, Mariachi Veritas, RAZA Ballet Folklórico, and the Kuumba Singers of Harvard College. Each group shared their talents and spoke proudly about their heritage as well as their hopes for their people.

“Cultural Rhythms isn't just a time for celebration, but a time for cultural solidarity, so this year we’re celebrating our cultures and our communities, and how they taught us to live and love together in life,” said Onyeiwu.

After the show, Emma Oyakhire ’26 said, “Contrary to popular opinion, because [Harvard is] a PWI you wouldn't think to see culture like this represented, but just watching the different cultures that I saw tonight — these are just the ones that performed, not even the ones that are all across campus.”

Once the show ended Golding reflected on the final product: “I watched this thing come together and I learned so much about what it means to create a space where marginalized folks are amplified — it's a form of demanding liberation, dreaming without bounds, creating without limits all while performing in service to the communities and cultures that raised us and that we carry with us each and every day.”

When asked what the most rewarding part of the experience was for Golding, she answered, “Getting to see how proud my peers are of who they are and where they come from. I think something we all share was a love of what has raised us and what has shaped us and wanting the rest of the community to love it and appreciate it as much as we do.”

Cultural Rhythms 2023 was a festival of unification. Rakesh Khurana, Dean of Harvard College, said it perfectly while addressing the student body: “In a space like this, we shape Harvard's future, and we show that our diversity is the source of infinite possibility for our world.”

— Staff writer Makayla I. Gathers can be reached at makayla.gathers@thecrimson.com.