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Show WEDNESDAY DECEMBER 7, 2016 5 ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED: September 21, 2016 Traveling theater group performs Thai epic Ramakien at Weber State MUJTABA ALRASHED | The Signpost Moradokmai students act out a Thai Performance at Wildcat Theater on Sept. 21. “Thousands of candles can be lighted from a single candle, and the life of the candle will not be shortened. Happiness never decreases by being shared.” — Buddha. By JEWELIETTE CORDERO A&E Reporter The Moradokmai Theatre Community and Homeschool from Pathumthani, Thailand came to Weber State University to perform Ramakien, an epic derived from the Hindu “Ramayana.” Through this performance, there are representations of love, sadness, power and tragedy, motifs accessible in any culture. “I want it to impact our cultures and bridge our heritage with those of other cultures by finding similarities,” said Michiko Nakashima-Lizarazo, director of the Center of Multicultural Excellence. “There was pain and tragedy, and that brought us all together even for only an hour.” The play is about a King Rama searching for his queen, Sida, who had been taken from him. The performances were interactive for audience members of all ages. Kids in the audience got to point their hands in order to tell the performers where to look for the missing character, but adults were also brought up to the stage as well. The volunteers danced and became a part of the scene. The Moradokmai Theatre Community and Homeschool is a non-profit school in a suburb of Bangkok that promotes music education and self-sufficiency. Through donations, the school has been able to build a new kitchen and classroom and to pay for their tickets to the U.S. to perform what they’ve been taught. The students learn everything from singing, dancing, learning how to perform in front of audi- ences and even agricul- Montana, Kentucky, Ohio ture. The students live and Missouri. at the school most of the The students will be year and usually grow up performing several more with each other from a famous epics for the upyoung age. Their grade coming hosts. They hope levels range from kinder- to raise enough money to garten all the way to earn- help build a boy’s dormiing bachelor’s degrees. tory, which currently does The seven students not exist at the school. from the school, who The Moradokmai came to perform here school and its students at Weber State, ranged will be touring until Januin age from 16 to 20 ary 2017, and they hope to years old. return next year to Weber Their trip doesn’t as they continue to exend here. They’ve been pose American audiences performing at colleges to Thai culture. all across the country, and their next stops inComment on this story at clude schools in Oregon, signpost.mywebermedia.com ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED: September 21, 2016 The Van Sessions hit the road again in Ogden By JESSICA BISCH0FF A&E Correspondent What started as a KWCR specialty show at Weber State University has now grown and expanded over recent years into a broadcasting and media company called The Banyan Collective, and participants attending Historic 25th Street’s First Friday Art Stroll can watch tapings of one of their podcasts, The Van Sessions. The chosen venue for local artists to jam out and share their thoughts and talents happens to be an ’80s Dodge van. This was Brandon Long’s family camping van, but it now doubles every month as the stage for acoustic music sets, broadcast live and later uploaded to the bands’ podcast channels. Long purchased the van from his parents, and after years of collecting dust on the side of his house, it became the main transportation for camping trips with his family. It also transforms into a mobile studio for all of The Banyan Collective’s podcasts. The van is parked outside, and musicians pack in with their instruments. The bands are all local and from 6–10 p.m. participate in an evening of casual conversation and acoustic performances. Lawn chairs line the side of the van, welcoming audience members to come and go as they please. “You really get to know who they are,” Long said of the acts they’ve broadcast so far. He researches the artists for hours before the podcast in order to pick out interesting and relevant questions. Long described how enjoyable it was to be producing in the van while the artists are performing. “That’s my family camping van. We could have easily been up South Fork, and my family was in the van days before, and now there’s musicians in there singing. It just blows my mind,” Long said. The Banyan Collective focuses on arts and outdoors in Ogden. They work in association with the First Friday Art Stroll, where local galleries open to the public to display their newest art exhibits. The Van Sessions has been broadcast in a few other locations as well, most recently during The Relay for Life event at WSU. The Van Sessions has received requests to visit different cities in locations as far away as Canada. Their priority, however, remains with the First Friday Art Stroll, but they are looking forward to many possibilities in the future. Due to popular demand, they are entering their second season of producing The Van Sessions. Long recalls his days studying at Weber State and stresses the opportunities that social media, blogs and podcasts create for students. He advocates students creating their own brand for whatever they want or what they’re passionate about. After developing his specialty show at Weber, he has transformed the same ideas into The Banyan Collective’s current productions years later. After the show, the venue gets packed up, filled with gas and parked back at home. It will sit until the next podcast session or weekend adventure with the family where it may become a performance venue, production studio or trusted transportation. Comment on this story at signpost.mywebermedia.com CHRISTINA HUERTA | The Signpost A crowd gathers to listen while “Blackkiss” musician Pete Sands performs a short acoustic set for the Van Sessions during the First Friday Art Stroll in February 2016. |