Editor,
I am a visiting scholar to UNM. When I came to the campus at noon last Monday, I was surprised to find that it was the second annual UNM Undergraduate Research and Creativity Symposium.
I happened to watch a few performances, such as "Astor Piazzolla and Le Grand Tango Performance Viola and Piano Duo," and the dancing of "Trio, Jessica Trembly."
They were just superb and received warm applause from the audience. I was greatly impressed by those performances, and at the same time deeply puzzled by the small number of audience members - each performance was cheered by at most 15 people, including the judges and performers' parents.
It seems to me some performers just played for the judges, as the audiences were so few, although the evening's student films attracted a large number of viewers.
In China, most universities hold annual art festivals, and students usually swarm to such performances - sometimes tickets have to be allocated to each department and only the lucky students can get the tickets, as those are big and exciting events for them.
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But why are there few attendees for such activities here in the United Sates? Is that because many students are busy? I certainly do not wish students to cut class to come to those shows, but there were some students chatting and eating nearby, not moved to such performances and turning deaf ears to such loud cheers.
Or is it because many students, including those chatting and eating nearby - I am certainly not blaming those students - have watched better performances elsewhere before? But these performances were worth their enjoyment and appreciation, as the loud clapping testified.
Or is it because American people are individualistic and just care for their own activities? I wish someone would tell me the exact reasons, and I wish more people would cheer for others and for themselves. A world without cheering from others is a cold and lonely world.
Dong Chengru
UNM visiting scholar
