Get ready to enjoy Georgia Tech's Vietnamese Student Association's GBM #1! Come learn about Vietnamese culture, feast on free traditional Vietnamese food, and participate in a fun activity with other people. No fancy art skills are required & everyone & all cultures are welcome – just bring your enthusiasm and leave with a full stomach! Don't miss out on this opportunity to express your creativity, enjoy free food, and connect with a vibrant community.

On 10/11/23 in the evening, the Vietnamese Student Association will be hosting the annual Moonfest Festival. One of the planned performances will be a mua lan performance, also known as traditional lion dancing. Vietnamese lion dancing has several roots in kung fu, and learning kung fu was typically a prerequisite to becoming a lion dance performer. This ensures that performers have the agilty, strength, and teamwork skills needed in various tricks. This traditional style of dancing involves performers wearing a wool lion costume and performing a choreographed dance, typically during the Lunar New Year. The dancing lions are also accompanied by a large drum, cymbals, and a gong. The sound of the drum represents the lion's heartbeat, and is essential to the performance as it signals actions for the lion dancers. The cymbals represent the atmosphere around the lion, and the gong represents the conscience of the lion. These instruments are used in tandem with the large drum to create traditional rhythmic patterns. Typically during Lunar New Year celebrations, firecrackers are also included. Their loud noise is meant to scare away evil spirits. The lion dance is meant to bring in good fortune for the new year, and is a performance form based in martial arts, music, and tradition. We will have food, performances, and tabling activities there too, so come out and show your support.