FUSO prepares for their annual showcase

Filipino Ugnayan Student Organization (FUSO): “Pilipino Cultural Night” (PCN)

ABIGAIL CAVIZO / ASST. A&C EDITOR / THE USD VISTA

“Pilipino Cultural Night” (PCN) is an annual event that various collegiate Filipino organizations across the country participate in putting on for their own college communities. At USD, the Filipino Ugnayan Student Organization (FUSO) puts on this annual event during the spring semester. FUSO’s PCN will feature cultural dances, student performances, short documentaries of senior members’ stories, a play, and a special guest performer. 

Due to COVID, PCN was online last year but will be making its in-person debut this Saturday on April 2 in Shiley Theater. 

The FUSO Co-Commissioners of Cultural Affairs (CCA) junior Dianne Catapang and junior Reyn Yoshioka have had roles in PCN since their freshman year. As Co-CCA’s, they are tasked with planning, overseeing, and heading PCN and all the performances involved. 

When they first began writing the play and planning the night, Yoshioka expressed there was a bit more pressure because of the uncertainty surrounding PCN in the past two years and its first in-person return since COVID began.

“Dianne and I were both lead actors in the play our freshman year, but it got cancelled because of COVID, so we’ve actually both never seen a full PCN in person,” Yoshioka said. “Finding a vision for it was tough, but I think it really helps that everyone involved is genuinely interested and motivated to help in some way.”

Similarly, Catapang felt they had to deliver an enjoyable night but emphasized that they didn’t want to have any ideas set in stone. 

If their plans shifted or changed based on the performers, she didn’t want to place stress on it because a night like PCN is meant to draw inspiration from the Filipino community and its cultural practices.

“Reyn and I had this freedom to be as creative with it as we wanted to, so I’ve been viewing it as a ‘working experience’ because we all come from different backgrounds,” Catapang said. “The play definitely took a different direction than we expected, but I think that’s the fun part about collaborating with others in that everyone puts their own identities into our characters.”

Both Catapang and Yoshioka drew inspiration from their own lives in writing the play. Through the main protagonists “Nina” and “Jacob,” they wanted to tell a story about the challenges of  navigating a new college lifestyle while still trying to stay true to oneself. Although Yoshioka is not Filipino, he draws inspiration from his Japanese background.

“In my high school, they were always asking us ‘Who are you?’ ‘Where are you going?’ and I was just floating in this void of trying to figure out who I am,” Yoshioka reflected. “Now that I’m in college, I realize identity is so dynamic. At all points in life, you can pick up things that you find valuable and want to implement in your life without changing yourself. In a cultural context, Jacob realizes his Filipino heritage is valuable and a tool for him to use throughout his life.”

Sophomore Chris Mauhay attended a couple of the PCN play’s rehearsals because he volunteered to play an extra. Like Yoshioka, Mauhay believes the play will open up new ways of thinking about identities. 

“I was lucky to grow up around a lot of Asian representation compared to USD,” Mauhay said. “Coming to their rehearsals, watching it makes me see ideas and experience in a way that I haven’t really thought about myself.”

First-year Mikayla Nang plays one of the leading roles in the play, Nina’s best friend, “Allison.” She’s excited to reveal the cast’s final product. 

“We’ve spent a lot of time working on memorizing lines, blocking, and working together,” Nang said. “It’s really fun, but I can’t wait to show everyone what we’ve been doing.”

Along with the play, there will be other forms of cultural arts and entertainment throughout the night. First-year Jackie Dy is participating in multiple dances, as well as singing the Philippine National Anthem. She hopes that everyone who attends the night will enjoy the intersection of educating oneself about Filipino culture and finding interest within it.

“I grew up in a Filipino household and my family is coming to watch PCN,” Dy said. “My performances are a tribute to how they raised me in that I want to show them that the culture means as much to me as it does to them.”

Both Yoshioka and Catapang want people of all identities and backgrounds to attend, describing the way that learning often reveals itself through two different ways: explicitly and implicitly. 

“Art is an implicit way of learning in which individuals can learn without being force-fed facts and it’s what makes a night like PCN so unique,” Yoshioka explained. “In learning a dance, they won’t be learning the steps, but they’ll experience a facet of someone’s culture. In seeing the play, you can walk alongside the experience of someone else’s culture.”

Even for those who are not Filipino or do not go to USD, the event is open for anyone to attend free of charge. 

Cultural expression is important not only to those involved, but also for those watching.