Duke Youth Voice
Theres "Oni" oneThursday, August 02, 2012 By Lilly Augspurger
On my first day of Duke Young Writers Camp (DYWC) at our living group meeting, I made one of my constant references to the musical “Les Misérables.” To my surprise, I didn’t receive the perplexed looks I usually do from my peers. A few nodded assent that if Enjolras thought red was a brilliant color for revolution, it must be a brilliant color for anything. One of my fellow fans is Othelia “Oni” Jumapao, a young lady of Filipino descent living in West Palm Beach, Fla. Jumapao enjoys songs from musicals and movies. One of her favorite musical characters is Fantine from “Les Misérables” because of her iconic solo song about the wretched state of her life, “I Dreamed a Dream.” One of her favorite movie songs is “Hellfire” from Disney’s “The Hunchback of Notre Dame,” in which the villain, Judge Claude Frollo, reveals his dark feelings for the movie’s heroine, the gypsy dancer Esmeralda. She also is an avid fan of Anime and Korean dramas, such as “Coffee Prince” and “Boys Over Flowers.” It comes as no surprise that she says her favorite style of music is K-Pop (Korean music). “I love the K-Pop band ‘Big Bang’,” she says, “as well as artists such as Amy Winehouse, ‘The Beatles’ and ‘Motley Crue’.” In addition to listening to music, Jumapao plays piano, reads, is involved in Key Club, and, of course, writes. “I’m still kind of finding my voice,” she said. Her fascination with writing undoubtedly stems from her love of books. “When I was little, my uncle would take me to the library and I’d read all the books.” Some of her favorite titles are “Harry Potter,” “Eragon,” “Almost Perfect,” “Bloody Jack,” and other books in the fantasy and coming-of-age realm. Jumapao attends Cardinal Newman High School, a private Catholic school in West Palm Beach. She describes the classes as being small, for better or for worse. “On one hand, you get to know people really well. But that’s kind of the bad thing, too. Everyone’s so stereotypically teenager—‘Jersey Shore’ and Facebook and texting. Maybe this is the reason I’d like to get out of state for college—I’m thinking maybe New England or California.” Jumapao finds enjoyment in English and history. “My favorite eras are the French Revolution, the Renaissance and the Golden Ages of Greece and Rome.” She also participates in the Key Club, a club dedicated to community service and helping others. One Key Club project was to help out at Quantum House, a place for cancer patients to live and Jumapao says she’s looking forward to getting more involved this year. So from K-Pop to Key Club, Jumapao has a very unique personality. It’s clear she’s on the road to success and hopefully will achieve all her goals. |