Sophie Camplejohn, Grade 11
UWC Pearson
Pearson UWC is unique in the UWC’s as it is well-known for hosting the One World Show each year - a celebration of the diversity and culture present at the school through performance. Last year was no different. Students auditioned for their acts to be in the show. Parents, family, and local Canadians were quick to buy tickets. Everyone drudged through the long rehearsals that took place every Sunday for weeks before the show. Act leaders shared their culture with peers through their beautiful dances and songs. Costumes were torn, sewed, re-used, and revamped from previous years. Every member of the Pearson community had a role. Unfortunately, Covid-19 played a role as well.
Due to safety regulations after a local high schooler in British Columbia, Canada tested positive; the One World Show seemed impossible. After so many gruelling hours of hard work and dedication, the Pearson community was devastated. As the spread of COVID worsened, we soon found ourselves a week away from leaving campus, still without a final performance. Although I am not one for tradition, I was heartbroken that our year was the first in many not to host it. The school’s solution? A virtual performance lives on the Pearson UWC FaceBook account.
With an earlier show and fewer practices than presumed, we were off to a rocky start. I, for one, had kitchen duty, along with a few peers, that night. We showed up late to our show, too busy scraping off leftovers on student’s plates and wiping tables down. Everyone dressed in their ‘national costume’, I grabbed the closest thing a born and raised white American had; the American Pass-down tacky and poofy dress plastered with stripes and stars and torn fabric. I squeezed my way through the crowd, struggling majorly due to the massive volume of my tacky and well-loved pass-down, as I found my spot in the alto section. Then, I realized I was in the soprano section. The show began anyways.
We started with a bang - ‘Take Down These Walls’, by Brian Tate, a song originally written as a protest for the civil war in the US. As the show continued, I reminisced on the many beautiful memories that embodied my ‘Pearson Experience’ - a truly special year indeed. Despite people falling on stage, mixing up the lyrics and choreography, or, in the case of Yusef Bushara’s Jump Rope Performance, not even having a full run-through routine, the show was beautiful, unique, and one for the books. The show ended with a bang as well. My friends, Gabriela Jímenez and Giovanny Martinez led Tambor, a Venezuelan dance. I was one of the students lucky enough to be a part of the performance, coupled up with my good friend Elis Soord. Even though I was told during every practice ‘to smile’, this time, it just came naturally as I danced the night away, flaunting my skirt. As our performance ended, the whole student body joined in for a community Tambor choreography. Despite the lack of audience, aside from a few house parents, there was a warmth in the school theater that I had not witnessed before. A dance routine practiced so many times that it felt mundane, soon became vibrant. Sadly, the One World Show came to an end, but, luckily, our high spirits didn’t. As we embraced one another with hugs, tears in our eyes, we began to jump and shout the chorus of the Tambor song: ‘Oleeeeee oleee oleeee oleeeee, Oleeeeee oleee oleeee oleeeee’. As I danced, I thought ‘I am a part of something bigger than myself’.
There are many significant moments I could pick that showed me what UWC was all about. I chose this specific moment because I feel that it best embodies the power of the UWC mission. By educating our peers on our traditions, languages, and culture, we united each other, no matter the background or differences, only sustaining peace and love for each other in the process. We had our setbacks and a fear of not performing at all, but our undeniably strong bond helped each student pull through to perform a once-in-a-lifetime, extra special, virtual One World Show.
Due to safety regulations after a local high schooler in British Columbia, Canada tested positive; the One World Show seemed impossible. After so many gruelling hours of hard work and dedication, the Pearson community was devastated. As the spread of COVID worsened, we soon found ourselves a week away from leaving campus, still without a final performance. Although I am not one for tradition, I was heartbroken that our year was the first in many not to host it. The school’s solution? A virtual performance lives on the Pearson UWC FaceBook account.
With an earlier show and fewer practices than presumed, we were off to a rocky start. I, for one, had kitchen duty, along with a few peers, that night. We showed up late to our show, too busy scraping off leftovers on student’s plates and wiping tables down. Everyone dressed in their ‘national costume’, I grabbed the closest thing a born and raised white American had; the American Pass-down tacky and poofy dress plastered with stripes and stars and torn fabric. I squeezed my way through the crowd, struggling majorly due to the massive volume of my tacky and well-loved pass-down, as I found my spot in the alto section. Then, I realized I was in the soprano section. The show began anyways.
We started with a bang - ‘Take Down These Walls’, by Brian Tate, a song originally written as a protest for the civil war in the US. As the show continued, I reminisced on the many beautiful memories that embodied my ‘Pearson Experience’ - a truly special year indeed. Despite people falling on stage, mixing up the lyrics and choreography, or, in the case of Yusef Bushara’s Jump Rope Performance, not even having a full run-through routine, the show was beautiful, unique, and one for the books. The show ended with a bang as well. My friends, Gabriela Jímenez and Giovanny Martinez led Tambor, a Venezuelan dance. I was one of the students lucky enough to be a part of the performance, coupled up with my good friend Elis Soord. Even though I was told during every practice ‘to smile’, this time, it just came naturally as I danced the night away, flaunting my skirt. As our performance ended, the whole student body joined in for a community Tambor choreography. Despite the lack of audience, aside from a few house parents, there was a warmth in the school theater that I had not witnessed before. A dance routine practiced so many times that it felt mundane, soon became vibrant. Sadly, the One World Show came to an end, but, luckily, our high spirits didn’t. As we embraced one another with hugs, tears in our eyes, we began to jump and shout the chorus of the Tambor song: ‘Oleeeeee oleee oleeee oleeeee, Oleeeeee oleee oleeee oleeeee’. As I danced, I thought ‘I am a part of something bigger than myself’.
There are many significant moments I could pick that showed me what UWC was all about. I chose this specific moment because I feel that it best embodies the power of the UWC mission. By educating our peers on our traditions, languages, and culture, we united each other, no matter the background or differences, only sustaining peace and love for each other in the process. We had our setbacks and a fear of not performing at all, but our undeniably strong bond helped each student pull through to perform a once-in-a-lifetime, extra special, virtual One World Show.
www.unitedworldwide.co