The Cultural Festival was the culmination of more than six weeks of preparation and planning. The festival which has become, according to the ISC, "one of our biggest annual events". Advertising of the event started a few weeks ago, both on and off campus. People from all over Worcester, and the Worcester Colleges Consortium, as well as WPI students, faculty and employees as well as parents, relatives and friends of WPI's students were invited to the festival which coincided with Parents' Day.
People that attended this international fair could see exhibits and taste food from countries such as Austria, Cyprus, Germany, India, Jamaica, Japan, Switzerland, Turkey, and from various Spanish and French speaking countries as well as several Islamic countries.
The TSA (Turkish Student Association) had a stand with various Turkish items, rugs, pictures and posters, as well as some sweets. The Republic of Cyprus, represented for the first time at WPI by two sophomore students, consisted of various Greek and Cypriot items, booklets, maps, posters, foods, as well as a film with Greek and Cypriot dances, and slides from Greece. JSA's (Japanese Student Association) stand was manned by Japanese students from WPI dressed in Kimonos (traditional Japanese female clothing), who provided visitors with Japanese tea and demonstrated how to make origami paper figures and flowers. The HSA (Hispanic Student Association) had a stand that represented most of the world's Spanish speaking countries, which were shown on a three dimensional map that the group had designed. A surprising exhibitor was a group of Jamaican students that set up a stand exhibiting various Jamaican items and pictures. WPI's French Circle represented all Francophone countries and had a stand with posters and leaflets from all these various countries. The group had also setup a set of tables in front of the stage, trying to imitate a French cafe, and had a constant flow of French Crepes being served to visitors. Deutsch Klub's (WPI's German club) stand consisted of various posters and booklets showing Austrian, German and Swiss architecture and culture. They also had a large assortment of German foods. The ISO (Indian Student Organization) had a multitude of exhibits from exotic India, as well as offerings of Indian food. The MSA (Muslim Student Association), representing the world's Islamic countries, had exhibits of Islamic culture from these various countries, as well as a Quran on display and a computer with software that allowed visitors at the stand to find out information in the Quran that relates to a particular topic.
The performances at the festival were very popular with the crowds. The performances kicked off with a performance of a traditional Thai dance, several popular performances by the HSA, which included a Tango and a musical called "Down from the Caribbean", which attracted the participation of the visitors, and other exhibitors. The ISO presented a specially choreographed dance, and a famous Hindi song. A German student sang a song called "Ueber den Wolken", and the president of the TSA performed a dance from Caucasian region to the north-east of Turkey.
Other performances include a performance by the Jamaican group a Japanese tea ceremony and a traditional Vietnamese dance from Vietnamese students from Worcester's South High School. The SMA (Society of Martial Arts) also had some martial art demonstrations.
When asked to comment on the Cultural Festival, many visitors said that they enjoyed it tremendously, and many even commented on the fact that this was one of the only such cultural events they had ever been to.