When I walked into Cahn Auditorium on Friday night, the venue was already buzzing with energy. Students filled every seat in view, ready for Celebrasia, one of Northwestern’s biggest and most anticipated cultural events of the year.
Over the course of two and a half hours, I saw incredible performances from Asian Pacific Islander Desi American student groups alongside several guest artists, all celebrating different cultures through musical and dance performances.
The show was organized by various cultural groups on campus, and what stood out to me immediately was the different types of performances. Traditional cultural dances, martial arts demonstrations and modern pop choreography were all highlighted in the programming. In particular, Filipino-Australian singer Grant Perez, known by his stage name grentperez, was this year’s headliner and had clearly drawn a lot of the crowd.
McCormick senior and Chinese Students Association External President Jerry Han shared his goals behind the event with me.
“We just want to showcase our super talented APIDA groups on campus, and having that representation in the form of Asian-American professional performing artists is really big,” Han said.
Between performances, organizers also performed short comedic skits referencing 2016 throwback trends. The jokes referencing VSCO and Pokémon GO earned plenty of laughs, and tied into the show also celebrating its 10th anniversary.
When Perez finally came on stage as the closing act, the energy in the auditorium shifted to something electric, as fans excitedly gathered closer to the stage. Armed with just an acoustic guitar and his voice, he performed without any backing track or additional instruments.
Despite the stripped-down setup, the crowd helped fill the room with their own sound. Most audience members, including myself, were in the stage pit and sang along through his set of songs — some performed fully, while others were shorter excerpts given the limited time.
After the performance, Perez shared a brief reflection on the event with me: “Today was really fun, I had a fun time and it was fun. I love you.”
Short, simple and straightforward — it would be hard to come up with a better summary than he did.
Celebrasia’s headliner grentperez was accompanied only by his guitar during his set, which included “Cherry Wine” and “Clementine.”
Other guest performers, including singer Johnny Huynh and indie-pop duo sundial performed short sets with six songs each.
Huynh opened his act with his 2025 release “LOCK ME OUT,” a moody pop-rock track about heartbreak. I found myself subconsciously nodding along to the rhythm during several of his songs, and by the end of his performance, I had already decided I would probably look up more of his music.
A more memorable movement came about during “MISS YOU TONIGHT,” when audience members raised their phone flashlights and gently swayed along to the music. From where I was sitting, it looked like the initiators were an especially enthusiastic group of fans seated on the left side of the auditorium, who Huynh had continuously acknowledged in between songs.
Nevertheless, the glowing lights around the auditorium created a surprisingly intimate and emotional atmosphere for such a large venue.
Sundial, composed of Dorothy Chan and Jisu Kim, followed with a more laid-back alternative-pop set while playing live electric guitars. The audience responded enthusiastically to their nostalgic 2021 hit song “24,” as well as an unreleased track.
When Chan’s microphone experienced some technical issues, the duo quickly restarted the song and continued without losing the crowd’s attention.
Northwestern K-Dance, NU’s only K-pop dance and community organization, opened the show with a high-energy routine to the songs “SPAGHETTI” by LE SSERAFIM, “Kick It” by NCT 127 and “FOCUS” by Hearts2Hearts. As a K-pop fan myself, I thoroughly enjoyed K-Dance’s set; the song choices were fantastic for the occasion.
Later in the program, the Typhoon Dance Troupe showcased traditional Chinese dances. This was my first time seeing the group, and their graceful and expressive choreography gave me a new appreciation for the style. It was one of the most artistic and visually striking performances of the evening.
Two of NU’s a cappella groups, Brown Sugar and NU Treblemakers, delivered remixed vocal arrangements, blending Asian songs with Western pop. I have always loved how a cappella showcases each member’s unique singing style, and the musical performances were a refreshing contrast to the dance groups.
Desi American representation was also highlighted through acts by Northwestern Deeva and NU Bhangra. Deeva blended traditional Desi dance with modern hip-hop and contemporary choreography, while NU Bhangra delivered an upbeat routine rooted in Punjabi folk dance.
Out of all student acts, however, I was particularly blown away by NU Taekwondo. Their high-energy routine contained synchronized martial arts combinations, acrobatic stunts and dramatic board-breaking demonstrations, where a broken board even flew into Cahn’s backdrop and left a small dent.
Their performance certainly drew some of the loudest applause that night, particularly after a short dance break to “GO!” by CORTIS.
As the festivities concluded, performers returned to the stage for a brief photo session with attendees. Walking out of the auditorium, it was clear that the event had done exactly what it set out to do: bring students together and celebrate cultural diversity and community.
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