Coming this weekend May 19-20!
Peforming first in Cleveland:
Instant Noodles Dance Crew
MTV’s America’s Best Dance Crew
Performing live on stage at the 2012 Cleveland Asian Festival on May 19 and 20, 2012. Performance times is now online at the website. Originating from Taipei, Taiwan Instant Noodles was founded in Rowland Heights, California. The group gained great recognition on MTV’s America’s Best Dance Crew in Season 6 and finished in the top five. Instant Noodles also guest starred on Disney’s “Shake it up” and several top Taiwanese variety shows. Instant Noodles has also appeared as featured dancers in music videos for Jennifer Chung and DANakaDAN from Afterschoolspecial. Competitively, Instant Noodles has entered several international competitions and finished in the top spots against the best dance crew from all over the world.
The B-boys of Instant Noodles aim to build a distinctive, entertaining dance style, fueled by character, musicality, creativity, and the companionship of each other. They pay tribute to their roots, aspire to innovate, and always remember to not take life too seriously.
Special Guest
Brigadier General Daniel D. Yoo
to help kick off the festival on Saturday!
Brigadier General Yoo currently serves as the Commanding General, Marine Corps Recruit Depot, San Diego and the Western Recruiting Region. He received a Bachelor of Science degree from Arizona State University in 1984.
In March 1985, he was commissioned a Second Lieutenant following completion of Officer Candidate School. Upon graduation from The Basic School and the Infantry Officers Course, General Yoo reported to the 1st Marine Division, Camp Pendleton, California, in April 1986. He was assigned duty with 2d Battalion, 9th Marines and served as a Rifle Platoon Commander, Heavy Machine Gun Platoon Commander, Weapons Company Executive Officer, and a Rifle Company Commander.
Brigadier General Yoo has served at all levels of the Marine Corps and has been stationed all across America and overseas in Okinawa, Japan. In July 2009, he deployed in support of Operation Enduring Freedom as the Commander, Regional Corps Advisory Command Central (RCAC-C) 3-7, 201st Corps, Afghan National Army. After redeploying from Afghanistan in April 2010, he relinquished command of 4th Marines and Camp Schwab. General Yoo then served as the Commandant of the Marine Corps’ Military Fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations in New York City.
His personal decorations include the Legion of Merit, Bronze Star Medal with Gold Star, Defense Meritorious Service Medal, Meritorious Service Medal, Joint Achievement Medal, Navy Achievement Medal, and the Combat Action Ribbon. He is a Marine Combatant Diver, a Military Freefall Parachutist, and a graduate of the U.S. Army Ranger School.
TV Personalities Emceeing at the Festival!
In addition to our Master MC Mr. Wayne Wong, we also have a variety of MCs helping out at the festival, come and see them on stage!
Returning as the Festival Master of Ceremonies is Wayne Wong. Wayne was raised in Cleveland and is a graduate of Case Western Reserve University. He is helping to develop future high efficiency space power systems as a technology project manager at the NASA Glenn Research Center and was awarded the NASA Exceptional Achievement Medal for his work. Wayne is also an artist and in the past, pursued his artistic passion as a comic book illustrator. He currently enthusiastically volunteers his time and energy to further the goals of the Cleveland Asian Festival. Joining Wayne to host the Festival at the two stages are a number of talented local media personalities.
Jason Nguyen comes back home to Cleveland from Fort Myers, Florida. He works at WKYC-TV as a Multi-Media Content Producer. Everyday Jason goes out and reports on the daily news you watch on Channel 3. Jason grew up in Cleveland and went to the University of Toledo, where he graduated with a degree in Communications with a focus in Broadcast Journalism. He’s excited to be back in the area and experience everything Cleveland has to offer. You can follow Jason and everything he does on Facebook, Jason Nguyen WKYC, or Twitter @FollowWIN
Melissa Reid joined the FOX 8 News team 2011 as a reporter in April, 2011. Before coming to FOX 8, Melissa worked at WTRF in Wheeling, WV and KDKA in Pittsburgh, PA as a reporter and producer, respectively. Melissa was born and raised south of Pittsburgh. She attended Bentworth High School and went on to study at Bethany College where she majored in broadcast journalism. She says her love for news came at an early age and lives to cover breaking news, as well as tell the unique and quirky stories. Melissa says that in her free time, she enjoys spending time with her husband Billy, and their dog, Miss Sophie Charlotte. She is also active in sports, including volleyball, golf, tennis, and softball. She also admits to having a mean shopping habit. Melissa is on Facebook and Twitter! Click on the links below to drop her a line and say hello!
Returning to the Cleveland Asian Festival is WKYC Channel 3 Weekend Evening Anchor Lynna Lai. Lynna was a guest MC during the inaugural Cleveland Asian Festival in 2010. Lynna Lai, brings 18 years of broadcasting experience to WKYC Channel 3. She began her career at WMDB Channel 31, the CBS affiliate station in Peoria, Ill. She soon jumped to KGW Channel 8, the NBC affiliate in Portland, Ore. Her first Cleveland stint was at WJW Channel 8, where, in 1994, she became the first Asian-American reporter at a Northeast Ohio television station. She left Channel 8 to work as an anchor and reporter at WTSP Channel 10, the Gannett-owned CBS affilliate in Tampa, Fla., and WSB Channel 2, the ABC affiliate in Atlanta, Ga. She also has been a freelance correspondent for ABC News and the BBC. She joined Channel 19 as an anchor and reporter in 2001. The hiring of Lai was announced just a week after weekend news anchor Eric Mansfield confirmed that he is leaving Channel 3 after Memorial Day to become the executive director of university media relations at Kent State University. Mansfield has been with the station for 18 years. “Lynna brings a wealth of experience to the table and will be a great asset to our news team,” Channel 3 news director Rita Andolsen was quoted saying in the Channel 3 statement. “She has strong anchoring and reporting skills and is passionate about telling the stories of our community.” Lai has received Associated Press awards for news writing and feature reporting, and, in 2004, won an Emmy for spot news reporting. Born in Chicago, Lai grew up in Louisiana. She is a graduate of Louisiana State University, where she was the recipient of the LSU Honor Scholarship and a National Merit Scholarship Award. But Lai says she has considered Cleveland her home since her parents moved here when she when she was a college freshman.
Stephanie Coueignoux became part of the Channel 3 news team in October 2011. Before joining WKYC, Stephanie was a reporter for Central Florida News 13, the 24 hour-cable station in Orlando, Florida. There, she covered major stories like the Casey Anthony trial, the retirement of the shuttle program, and of course every tropical storm! Stephanie has also worked as an anchor in both Wisconsin and Nebraska. Stephanie started her broadcast journalism career back in college as an intern for WHDH in Boston. A curious person by nature, she knew a career that allowed her to ask questions for a living, was the one for her. Stephanie says her favorite part of her job is being able to make a difference with each story she tells. Stephanie credits her adventurous spirit to her upbringing. She was born in France, but soon after moved to Colorado, then California, and finally Massachusetts. She also spent a year living in Australia. Now, Stephanie calls Cleveland home and is embracing everything the city has to offer. Stephanie is a graduate of Wellesley College, where she earned her bachelor’s degree in Psychology. In her spare time, Stephanie loves to cook, travel, and stay active. Stephanie wants to hear from you, whether it’s just to say ‘hi’ or to share a story idea.
Complete schedule is now online!
Visit Cleveland Asian Festival site and check out the complete schedule! Including the 80-page thick Program Booklet that is also available for download. 15000 of the booklet will be distributed throughout the two days event! You can grab a copy before the festival at Asia Plaza.
We thank our sponsors!
Without your support, our festival wouldn’t be successful! Please click here to see the list of our sponsors whom made this festival one of the fastest growing festival in Northeast Ohio!