Events By Quarter
Cup of Culture
CANCELED - Parasite
Canceled
(1/7/21) – This event has been canceled.
This psychological thriller, directed by award-winning Bong Joon-Ho, follows a poor Korean family who scheme to become employed by a wealthy family and infiltrate their household by posing as unrelated, highly qualified individuals.
Music Performance
ONLINE - Thuy: An Evening of Pop and R&B
Thuy
Online Performance and Q&A
(1/7/21) - This event is now online.
Vibrant Vietnamese-American singer/songwriter, Thuy, is setting herself apart in today’s pop R&B scene. The Bay Area native grew up surrounded by music and at age 9, knew she wanted to be a pop star. However, with no exemplars to look up to who looked like her, Thuy traded her musical hopes for a career in medicine. After a few lackluster years in the medical field followed by a chance visit to a studio, Thuy finally saw what a professional career in music could look like and in no short time, recorded her first record, “Hands on Me”. As the track hit radio on Bay Area’s KMEL 106.1, Thuy cemented her earliest step into pop R&B success.
Since then, the now Los Angeles-based artist has released several records showcasing her angelic vocals, skillful songwriting, and modern R&B stylings. Having amassed over 60 million global streams and garnered support from premier publications and playlists including Billboard, Paper, Harper’s Bazaar, Lyrical Lemonade, Flaunt, Earmilk, Spotify New Music Friday, and Apple Music Best New Songs, Thuy proves that her celestial voice and knack for earworm melodies are here to stay.
2021 marks a turning point for the relative newcomer, whose debut EP is set to arrive when the excitement for her music has never been stronger. With the highly anticipated project on the horizon, Thuy hopes that her music continues to inspire confidence in others and to be a voice for those who want to feel seen.
Q&A to follow the performance
Co-sponsor: Vietnamese Student Association (VSA)
Music Performance
ONLINE - Mwedzi
Tawengwa Tanyaradzwa, Etienne Charles, and Gerson Lazo-Quiroga
Online Performance Screening and Q&A
(1/10) - This event is now online.
(1/26) - New start time 7:00 pm.
Mwedzi means moon, menstrual cycle, and month in Chivanhu. Mwedzi tells the story of a rite of passage into Womanhood. The twelve-year journey began in 2008, when the artist left Zimbabwe for the United States. As a Zimbabwean woman living in the United States, staying grounded in ancestral wisdom has been vital for survival. Mwedzi shares this wisdom and honors the healing power of ancestors, the Divine Feminine, and self-love. From the artist, “A year ago, my great great grandmother, Charwe, began visiting me in my dreams. She had heard my prayers. My prayers at that time were filled with sorrow. I wept every night, pleading to be reconciled with my homeland, my family, and the ancestral knowledge stolen from us over seven hundred relentless years of capitalism, white supremacy, Christian missionary proselytism, and neo-colonialism. In my dream, Charwe said Musikavanhu – the Creator – had called me to heal the very tears I was weeping; and that I would heal this wound in myself, and in others. She had come to teach me the ways of N’anga – the sacred healers. ‘Everything will be made whole,’ Charwe said. ‘But in order to become a keeper of this ancestral wisdom, you must first be initiated into Womanhood’.”
Post performance screening Q&A to follow with Tanyaradzwa Tawengwa, and special artist appearances with Etienne Charles and Gerson Lazo-Quiroga.
ONLINE - Tony’s Wheels
Author Mila Philipzig
Online
Special guest: Antonio “Tony” Flores a.k.a the real life Tony!
Inspired by a true story, Tony’s Wheels follows a boy who moves to Canada from the Philippines and becomes successful in wheelchair racing. He becomes so good he gets to join the National Canadian Team. While competing internationally, Tony meets para-athletes from his old country and notices that their equipment is old and heavy. Tony wins the race, but how does he treat his competitors? Authored by Mila Bongco-Philipzig.
Bio Mila is the author of bi-lingual children’s books celebrating stories of migration and travel, culture, heritage, and traditions. Born and raised in Manila, she currently lives in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada with her husband, Jan. They have one son, Mats. Mila is an avid marathoner and a passionate advocate for human rights and inclusion and diversity.
