-^-for posterity-^-

all singing, all dancing, all in preparation for teacher's day 2003.

the foreigners were, as always, honored. we were placed in the front and upwards of 400 students sat behind us. we were given bottles of water. we were introduced as the 'valued foreign teachers with whom we have the pleasure of studying.' the mc was a thin man from my literature class. he had a quirky smile and didn't bow too low when he walked on the stage. we were in the palm of his hand and he made sure we ate directly out of it. he wore makeup, which is hilarious. he wore pink lipstick and had a nice, light foundation which hid his pimples well.

there was a large band in front of us. two keyboards, one man controlling the microphones, another man controlling the cd players which were small and hastily wired, a guitarist who hunched over his guitar as if dead, a plain bassist and two men who would rotate on the drums. one of the drummers would always play with a cigarette in his mouth and the ashes hung limply off the end and never seemed to fall. i would watch his cigarette and wait for the ashes to fall on his snare drum as he thumped and bounced to the rhythm but they magically stayed.

the lights flashed and the show began. this was the english department's preparation for teacher's day. each class could perform as many dances or songs as they wished. there were twenty eight groups that were going to perform with mindless chatter between each. the winners of this competition would go on to compete in an all-school event this friday and the winners of that would perform on teacher's day.

the singing began. students would shyly walk out onto the stage dressed in their beautifully and flowing ao dai dresses and the men with ties. some were shy, others were incredibly outgoing. girls would shake as they began. the voices of the boys would waver. the students who enjoyed the lime-light would eventually get used to the stage. they would begin to sing with more fervor, their voices rising and falling. the music was so loud it seemed to penetrate all parts of your brain and not allow any room for logical thought. we sat in front of three huge speakers stacked on top of one another.

the students who sang solos or duets were unbearable. some had a nice voice and others were doing it simply because they liked the 400 pairs of eyes staring at them and the applause at the end would ring in their ears long after their performance was over. on girl sang four songs and i was about to walk onto the stage and kindly remind her that she had sung enough tonight and that i had to go to bed

the dances were something else entirely. the dances were incredibly patriotic. an entire class would participate. every student would have their roles. it is in all of our interests to describe one:

the girls of the class started on the sides of the stage. they were wearing long, blue skirts, white shirts and a strange sort of cape that was sewn to the back of their shirts. the cape resembled the wings of a butterfly. three of the girls would run across the stage with their leading arm high in the air and their following arm behind. they tried to emulate ballet dancers by stepping slowly and quickly. they would fall to the ground on the other side of the stage. three more of the girls would follow after a bit and also fall down. three more girls. three more girls. there ended up being an odd pile of blue and white cloth with black hair to one side of the stage. they would all slowly rise and fan out across the stage. they would dance in unison. they would twirl around and lift their hands. they danced with their hands. they would then form a circle and prance around for a bit. next, they would all run to one side of the stage together in a massive group with their leading arm high in the air. they would run back. back and forth again. finally, a male student would walk out onto the stage wearing a completely green suit which, i assumed, was to represent an army uniform. he would run in the middle of the girls with his leading arm stretched high above his head. a girl would walk out in an equally green uniform with a revolutionary scarf tied around her neck. by this point, the blue and white fairies were standing still in the middle of the stage. their arms were outstretched and they didn't move. the army girl and boy would frolic for a bit. they would twirl around and make sure not to touch each other too much. eventually, they would both fall down on opposite sides of the stage. the fairies would dance again for a bit. some more army boys came out in green. they picked up the girl and the boy and carried them around for a bit. i assume they were now dead because of revolutionary struggle. the fairies formed a line in front of the stage with their wings outstretched. the two bodies were carried high above the fairies as if a funeral. all the while, patriotic music was blaring. now there was a pause. the fairies stood there and there was no movement. the army girl who had died changed her clothes and the music picked up a bit. she wore pink peasant's clothes. the fairies all poured to one side of the stage and stood silently. a girl emerged wearing a school uniform. she started to prance with the once army girl now in pink. they pranced together for a while. she was the daughter. now, after much prancing and frolicking, more people poured out wearing violently red shirts with black ties. they ran in formation much like the fairies who were now fanned out in the back. they held their hands high in the air and ran around in a large circle. they were the new generation. the army boys now poured out also running with their hands in the air. everyone fanned out into a large 'v' on the stage. there was a flagpole in the background. the soldiers hoisted the once army girl now in pink who had died but now mysteriously lived and who also had a daughter up on their shoulders. she stood with her fist in the air, her face defiant. two flags were raised on the pole. the vietnamese flag with the large, single star in the middle and the hammer and sickle. the music reached its crescendo and the performance ended. everyone walked to the edge of the stage and bowed. all the students cheered and howled.

there were four or five dances that were quite similar to that.

we sat and sat and sat and sat. we sat for four hours and change clapping and growing more and more sarcastic. we slyly commented to one another in violent and hushed whispers making sure to use as much slang as possible so no one could understand. the last person sang; a thin boy who had an even thinner voice who squeaked out a love song to a tired crowd. we cheered and thanked him because our long journey was finally over.