If you could describe AHS in one event, you’d probably say Heritage Night.
The event, scheduled for Feb. 13 at 7 p.m., gradually approaches closer as performers wrap up their final rehearsals.
With 17 days left until Heritage Night, most performers should feel adequately prepared for the highly anticipated night, right? Wrong.
“We haven’t learned all the dances yet and our outfits aren’t made yet,” senior Fatmata Musa, a performer for Royalties of West Africa, said.
Performers for the Philippines, Royalties of West Africa and Afghanistan noted feeling somewhat to not prepared at all for their performances since the Heritage Night interest meeting held on Nov. 19.
“I have no idea what I’m even supposed to do yet,” senior Khyber Zaheer, a performer for Afghanistan, said. “But I still want to represent my country, so hopefully I can start preparing.”
Despite these concerns, many groups have laid out their groundwork and planned thoroughly for Heritage Night.
“We’ve created a calendar of when we’re going to have practices and when dress rehearsals are so we have a good idea of what things should be done in what time frame,” Musa said.
This common feeling of unpreparedness does not stem from poor organization by group leaders, but rather from challenges in execution and staying on top of tasks.
“Only recently did we get the poles for our routine,” junior William Torres, a performer for the Philippines, said. “We still haven’t ordered our outfits.”
As a school that frequently prides itself on diversity and highlighting the student body’s backgrounds through events like Heritage Night, it’s concerning that many performers are feeling unprepared in the weeks leading up to the event.
Heritage Night deserves more than last-minute coordination. In the coming years, extensive planning could be done for Heritage Night.
Coordinators and group leaders should not only “start earlier,” Torres said, but also have “more direct emails sent to students so they know [what to do],” Zaheer said.
After all, Heritage Night is a cultural celebration, not another stressor for students.
