Dance clubs are very popular in universities, and kpop dance clubs are no exception. At the University of Pittsburgh, many people might hear of a kpop dance group called FRESA, or simply strawberry in Spanish. Each semester, FRESA holds a showcase that typically amasses a huge audience. November 12th, 2023 is the day that I came to one of FRESA’s showcases. Admittedly, this was not the first FRESA showcase I’ve been to, but I had attended enough FRESA events to know how the showcase generally works.
When I first stepped into the entrance to the showcase, there was already a long line of people there. Some came because they are avid fans of kpop, others came because their friends are performing at the showcase. Anyways, I had to stand behind a very long line, but soon, I signed in as one of the audience members and took a seat. I ended up taking one of the seats in the last row since there were so many people sitting at the front and middle rows.
The performance started with New Jeans’ “Super Shy,” and the instant the song started, I could hear loud cheering from some of the audience. Strangely, I remembered the cheering from the first FRESA showcase I went to not being as loud as this one, but that was because the first showcase took place in the Bellfield auditorium, which is much larger than the WPU Assembly Room. I like the song “Super Shy,” and I enjoyed the dance cover for that song. When the next song, which was TXT’s “Good Boy Gone Bad,” came on, there were instances of the audio going loud and then quiet repeatedly. To make matters worse, the loud cheering still happened, which kind of made me worried for the people in the back who might not have been able to hear. That same audio issue continued to happen in a few of the other songs later. Despite the audio issues, I very much enjoyed the dance covers done by the talented performers.
Similar audio issues then happened in a few other performances, and that only got worse because there were some people cheering loudly in the middle of the dances. To the audience members trying to enjoy the performance, this was very distracting, especially for the audience sitting at the back. Thankfully, more audio issues didn’t happen after intermissions. On the other hand, one good thing about the showcase was the service. During intermissions, snack bags were provided for the audience, and these snack bags are usually filled with fan-favorite snacks, like a bag of chips and some candies. In addition to kpop dance covers, there were also guest performances. Some of the guest performances in this semester’s showcase were Yanlai Dance Academy, Controlled Chaos, and Yabaso, and they all gave spectacular performances. There were also two vocals showcased, and the two singers had magnificent voices.
Overall, the FRESA showcase is a fun event for anybody who enjoys kpop and likes to watch kpop dance covers. It is especially fun if there are songs that you really like, but you can only know which songs are chosen just from the pamphlet given at the entrance. However, when I sat more towards the front after intermissions, I noticed that it was better to enjoy the dance when sitting in the front or middle. It might be better if you arrive a couple of minutes earlier since the line can get very long at the start, though keep in mind that that showcase took place at the WPU Assembly Room, which is relatively small compared to other stages. Nevertheless, most FRESA showcases are worth watching if you are the right audience for them.