WINGED POST
THE HARKER SCHOOL
Nonprofit Org. US Postage PAID San Jose, CA Permit No. 2296
500 SARATOGA AVE.
SAN JOSE, CA 95129
THE UPPER SCHOOL STUDENT NEWSPAPER OF THE HARKER SCHOOL VOL. 24 NO. 4
500 SARATOGA AVENUE, SAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA 95129
UPCOMING DATES
MONDAY, FEBRUARY 6, 2023
EVERYTHING IS ‘BETTER 2GETHER’
PRESIDENT’S WEEK BREAK MONDAY, FEB. 13 - FEB. 20 SDC CULTURE WEEK MONDAY, FEB. 27 - MARCH 3
Experiencing a day in SF Japantown katerina matta & alison yang First established in the late 1900s, San Francisco’s Japantown, or Nihonmachi, boasts a wealth of delicious restaurants, family-owned businesses and vestiges of the hidden history of the Japanese-American community. Although the once 40-block long ethnic enclave shriveled to a six block area after the Japanese-American internment during World War II, the neighborhood remains a vibrant, defiant celebration of Japanese culture and cornerstone of the Japanese-American community within the Bay Area. Continued on page 7.
California storm weather subsides arjun barrett After ravaging the state for several weeks, the early and mid-January California storms have passed on. Before regional severe weather warnings were lifted, the upper school campus faced heavy rain and winds near the end of the first semester of courses.
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selina xu The curtains draw back as the Patil Theater is plunged into darkness. Strings of neon light descend, illuminating the stage. Suddenly, the first notes of “It Takes Two” by Rob Base and DJ EZ Rock break the silence as four neon stick figures materialize from the shadows. The rest of Kinetic Krew (KK) rushes in from the wings, dancing to the rhythm in glowing sunglasses and reflective cargos. As fast as they appeared, they are replaced by Harker Dance Company (HDC), showcasing a synchronized jazz combination filled with energetic jumps and turns. HDC invites KK to the stage for a series of electric partner moves. The song abruptly stops, leaving the senior captains, Anja Ree and BB Ajlouny, in the spotlight. All eyes focus on them as they strike a pose. The lights black out, and the annual dance production begins.
100 dancers performed 18 dances at the upper school’s 2023 dance production on Jan. 27 and Jan. 28. Both showings of the production lasted over two hours. Themed “Better 2Gether,” the production was split into two acts, one focusing on mashups and the other on duets. 11 students each choreographed one dance: juniors Selina Chen, Luke Mehta, Kuga Pence and Callie Yuan and seniors Makayla Aguilar-Zuniga, BB Ajlouny, Nick Delfino, Nupur Gupta, Linette Hoffman, Eileen Ma and Anja Ree. All the student choreographers took the Dance Composition and Choreography classes to gain the skills needed to direct their dances. The remainder of the performances were choreographed by Harker dance teachers. The final performance was the result of over four months of work. Students had prepared for the dance production as early as September and were awarded PE credit for participating in the show.
FREE FLOW (left) Juniors Fiona Yan and Kai Stinson dance to Connor Price’s “Violet.” STAR STUDDED (top) Trisha Variyar (12) poses in Lana Del Rey’s “Young and Beautiful,” choreographed by Anja Ree (12). NO PRESSURE (bottom) Students dance to senior Eileen Ma’s choreography of “Peer Pressure” by James Bay.
Eileen, choreographer of “Peer Pressure,” a lyrical dance set to her favorite song by Julia Michaels and James Bay, began choreographing by listening to the music and thinking of which key shapes and moments she wanted to highlight. She recalls the process of transforming her ideas into vivid dances on stage. “The most rewarding part about choreography is seeing it all come together with [my] dancers,” Eileen said. “I can’t actually envision [my ideas] until I get to the dance room. Sometimes I’ll bring in choreography and it turns out so much better than I could have ever imagined.” Visit harkeraquila.com for full article.
Lively Hoscars performances showcase student talent sarah mohammed, claire zhao & sabrina zhu Upper school students and faculty cheered for their peers at the annual Hoscars performance, which occurred in the Patil Theater on Friday. With two shows for underclassmen and upperclassmen organized by the Associated Student Body (ASB) Student Events committee, the showcase featured talented performers who were encouraged to pertain to the show’s theme for this year: “Nostalgia.” Starting Nov. 30, students who were interested in participating could submit their auditions by Jan. 13. Namrata Karra (12) performed a three-minute mash up between Adele’s “When We Were Young” and Javed Ali’s “Jashn-E-Bahaara” with Aria Jain (12) and Samvita Gautham (12). They enjoyed the opportunity to express their interest in Bollywood music via Hoscars.
VIBRANT VOCALS Seniors Aria Jain, Namrata Karra and Samvita Gautham sing at a Hoscars rehearsal. Performances ranged from skits and songs to tableaux vivants.
“I’ve listened to a lot of Bollywood and English mashups — it just seemed right for us to do [this],” Namrata said. “Sammy [Samvita] performed before but I never did, so I think we were just like, ‘Oh,
JESSICA TANG
Voting is a foundational act in which people participate and contribute to democracy. While it is only one of many forms of engagement, it is a powerful way for people to have their voices heard and have an impact on issues that affect them and their communities; it can also serve as a gateway to other forms of advocacy. Gen Z, short for Generation Z, refers to people born between the mid 1990s and early 2010s. While Gen Z is often associated with short attention spans and addiction to technology, recent research shows that Gen Z strives to address current issues and solve them through protests, activism and more. Within politics, most Gen Zers find interest in the subject by their late teens. Continued on page 5.
EDWARD HUANG
desiree luo & vika gautham
SELINA XU
EDWARD HUANG
Generation Z engages in political activism
look, if we can audition, then we might as well.’ Everyone who performed at Hoscars [last year] is so talented and it was really fun to watch them.” Visit harkeraquila.com for full article. DESIGN BY ARJUN BARRETT