Every year around mid-November, the walls of Alumni Hall are adorned with colorful flags, the room is filled with cultural displays and a variety of unique dances are performed by students. The occasion: Gustavus? International Festival.

The International Cultures Club (ICC) hosts the event each year and does all of the planning and coordinating that goes into the festival. This year on Friday, Nov. 14, there will be about twenty country displays set up where students can learn about different cultures from around the world through pictures, cultural information and various objects used within the display to represent the country.

There will be people at each country display to talk with students and field any questions they might have. In addition, some displays will include traditional food from the country so that students have the opportunity to taste the cuisine from various cultures.

?The format of this International Festival is similar to past years, but the country displays, performances and fashion show will all be unique to the people [who] are involved this year,? said ICC Adviser Jeff Anderson.

The performances, which begin at 7:00 p.m., will include an L.A. style of salsa dance from Professor of Spanish Elizabeth Harsma. Her dance will ?emphasize sensuousness, theatricality, aerobics and most importantly, musicality,? said Harsma. After Harsma finishes her performance, she will invite students on stage for a mini lesson in salsa dancing.

In addition to the salsa dance, the performances will include percussion-style belly dancing or ?Tabla,? a taekwondo demonstration, Professor of French Paschal Kyoore playing the African xylophone or ?Gyil,? an Indian dance and a type of French break dancing called ?tecktonik.? Students will also play songs from Japan, China and France, as well as from the Swedish rock group ABBA.

When the performances conclude, a fashion show will follow, displaying traditional dress from all over the world.

The entire event is planned and coordinated by students involved in the ICC and is run by volunteers from around the community. These include international students who are studying at Gustavus, students who have studied abroad, students representing their own culture or heritage, faculty members and individuals from the local community. Each country display has been created by volunteers who are responsible for presenting them and fielding questions from students.

The ICC leaders contact all of the volunteers to make the event possible, as well as work with dining services to prepare all of the food. They are also responsible for setting up Alumni Hall, publicizing the event around campus and planning all of the details of the event. In addition, many members of the ICC make their own country displays or are involved in the performances or fashion show.

?The International Festival is a great opportunity for students at Gustavus to actually see all of the cultural diversity that we have on this campus. And it?s a fun way for students from other cultures or who have studied abroad to share their experiences and talents,? said Junior Biology Major Chelsea Kramer, the American Co-President to the ICC.

Last year, the International Festival garnered approximately 400-500 attending students and community members, and the ICC hopes to increase that number this year. The event is free and will take place on Friday, Nov. 14, beginning with the country displays at 6:00 p.m. and followed by the performances and fashion show at 7:00 p.m.