Anderson Hall will come alive Saturday, Oct. 25, with an immersive celebration of the martial arts of Southeast Asia designed to thrill all five senses.
Scheduled from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. in one of the building’s gymnasiums, the event will feature master teachers and their students from throughout the Midwest as well as music and food from the region that includes Burma, Thailand and the Philippines and an informational table staffed by NIU’s Asian American Resource Center.
Registration begins at 9:30 a.m. – and, for those who are curious and interested, good news: No experience is necessary to participate.
Free introductory lessons and chances to spar are provided, and the activities are approved for the Business Passport and Honors Engaged Experiences programs.
Paul Wright, a professor in the Department of Kinesiology and Physical Education (KNPE) and executive director of the Physical Activity and Life Skills Group, partnered with the NIU Center for Southeast Asian Studies to sponsor the day.
“I see this as a conscious effort to use NIU and KNPE as a space to gather people from the campus and university community around movement and physical activity that promotes health, well-being and fitness,” Wright says.
“But it also promotes diversity, equity and inclusion in the sense that it’s about global and cultural awareness,” he adds, “and it promotes wellness in that these are practices known to be good for not only physical health but also mindfulness.”
Most of the master teachers and students already committed represent Filipino martial arts from at least four different schools in the Chicago area “but any given school or group that shows up will have a spot.”
Each can step into the spotlight to deliver a 30- to 40-minute lesson or showcase.
“There’s also going to be a chance for mixing and mingling among the groups. Students from different schools will get to meet other masters and work with students from different places,” Wright says.
“It’s interesting because even though these martial artists and martial arts schools do very similar stuff, people tend to be a little territorial, right? They do it their style. They do it their way. This is their lineage,” he adds.
“So, it’s unfortunate that the schools don’t get together too often because, if any one of them hosts it, it’s on their turf and you’re less likely to get others involved. A couple years ago, I saw that NIU could be a really nice, neutral space because all of them are comfortable coming here and participating and contributing. Everybody can come together on equal footing.”
Lessons and skills training will take place in the morning.
After lunch – KNPE has paid for a Filipino food truck that will serve the tastes of its home country, and Burmese, Filipino and Thai musicians from the School of Music and the community will perform – come the opportunities for light competition.
“Sparring with padded sticks will be a big feature of the afternoon, and we’ll have people wear helmets,” Wright says.
“People who showed up in the morning knowing nothing will have had a few hours of learning how to hold the stick, some basic swings and a little bit of an idea of how to move with them, so if they want to try some padded-stick sparring, they can,” he adds. “We know that they’re beginners, and we’d ease them into it.”
Those with previous experience, meanwhile, are welcome to “really test their skills and do more intense, full-speed sparring.”
For more information, email pwright@niu.edu or cseas@niu.edu.
