Spanish National Honor Society hosted the 6th annual Spanish Cultural Night, La Noche Cultural, in the Saratoga Gym yesterday from 6 to 8 p.m.

Students began the evening by feasting on a selection of Spanish cuisine: nachos, salsa, guacamole, tortillas, chicken, and paella, a rice delicacy from Valencia, Spain. On the sweeter side was horchata, a traditional almond beverage, and churros for dessert.

Four varieties of paella were offered: vegetariano (vegetarian), con pollo (with chicken), con mariscos (with seafood), and con todo (with everything).

“My favorite part is the performances and the food,” said Nathan Dalal (11), whose favorite Spanish food is paella. “They kind of bring out the Spanish person in everyone.”

Student and faculty performers then took the stage to display their talents. The lineup began with Shreyas Parthasarathy (12) who played “Verano Porteño”, a Spanish classical guitar piece.

Nathan continued the show, performing a karaoke version of “Livin’ La Vida Loca” by Ricky Martin. After him came a duet to Juanes’ “Fotografía”, sung by juniors Sachin Peddada and Riya Godbole.

Jeanette Fernandez, Upper School math teacher, and her son Jacob performed next with a Mexican folklore dance.

Rachel Renteria (10) sang “Libre Soy”, a Spanish version of “Let It Go” by Idina Menzel from the movie Frozen, followed by the duet “Libertango” performed by cellist Matthew Huang (11) and pianist Andrew Jin (11).

After the instrumental performance, Sahana Narayan (10) sang “La Chica de Ipanema”.

Seniors Anika Gupta, Avinash Nayak, and Mabel Luo ended the show by singing and dancing to “La Vida es un Carnaval” by Celia Cruz – the trio was supplemented onstage by Kevin Moss (12), Nathan, Ariana Shulman (12), and Johnny Hughes (12).

Following the performances came a dancing session, in which Upper School Spanish teachers taught students how to salsa.

After an informal period of free time, Spanish teacher and department head Abel Olivas stepped onstage to announce the start of the salsa competition. Students formed pairs and began salsa dancing to Spanish music at the back of the gym.

Dancers tried not be eliminated by Upper School Spanish teachers, who doubled as judges.

Mabel Luo (12), President of Spanish National Honor Society, thinks the salsa competition was her favorite activity of the night.

“I think everyone really got into it,” she said. “It’s a really fun way to get everyone involved.”

The pair of Krishan Kumar (12) and Rebecca Chen (12) won first place, while Avinash Nayak (12) and Shreyas Parthasarathy (12) won second. The third place winners were Zareen Choudhury (12) and Shivani Gillon (12).

“[Winning] is not a new feeling for me, but it’s a wonderful feeling.” said Krishan on his salsa victory.

Krishan, who had attended two prior Spanish Cultural Nights, also gave advice for aspiring salsa competition winners.

“The formula for future years, so you kids know, is this: at the very beginning, make up and plan out what you’re gonna do,” he said. “Stick to it and repeat it over and over. That’s what Rebecca and I did the entire night.”

Avinash and Shreyas were proud of their second-place accomplishment and lauded Krishan and Rebecca’s win.

“Getting second felt good because I thought Shreyas and I still pulled off a lot,” Avinash said. “I thought there was no way we could have won against Krishan.”

“Krishan and Rebecca’s hips are like Shakira, so we can’t beat them,” Shreyas added.

Another pair on the dance floor was that of Jason and his partner Nathan. The team was tapped out within “15 seconds of dancing,” and Jason remained frustrated about his and Nathan’s loss.

“I felt like we delivered a great performance, and we danced our hearts out,” he said. “We clearly should have won first place. I’m furious, and I want justice.”

Sohil Patel (10) felt that the variety of Hispanic events and the authentic cuisine contributed to a different perspective on Spanish society.

“Especially with the salsa dancing competition, it wasn’t just restricted to salsa,” Sohil said. “It was a mixture of all Hispanic kinds of dances–although we kind of expanded that too.”

Spanish National Honor Society members, from sophomores to seniors, signed up weeks in advance to help out with the planning, publicity, and setup for the night. Arriving one hour early and staying after the event, students in Spanish NHS set tables, bussed dishes, served food, and cleaned the gym as just a few of their responsibilities.Also the primary faculty advisor for Spanish National Honor Society, Olivas reflected on the importance of the event to the organization and the community.

“I think its a great, energetic, fun event that celebrates culture. It’s an activity that we do that bonds our society,” he said. “We also feel like we’re offering some culture for the non-Society [Spanish National Honor Society] members who are Spanish students.”

For next year, Olivas hopes to get more participation and involve more students, despite having “a really good turnout” and “especially strong presentations.” The next Spanish Cultural Night will be held in March 2015.

Gallery • 11 Photos

Cindy Liu