(Clearwisdom.net) The annual "First Night" Festival of Toronto opened on December 29, 2003. This is one of the most important New Year's celebration events in Toronto. The Falun Gong Practitioner Waist Drum Team was invited to perform at the evening celebration party.

The theme of this year's evening party, which was held at the famous Toronto landmark-the Skydome Stadium, was "Children and Peace." The performers included many famous Canadian singers and dancers as well as DAREarts, which had children performing with the international Centipede Children's Choir at the 100^th Anniversary Nobel Peace Prize Concert in Oslo in 2001.

This was the first time that two Chinese groups were invited to perform in a large-scale celebration event of this kind. The Falun Gong Practitioner Waist Drum Team was one of the two groups. 48 practitioners were dressed all in gold yellow suits with a yellow kerchief around their heads and a piece of silk cloth around their waists. The practitioners' first appearance on the stage gave spectators a new and fresh look. Their movements were in good order. With the drums making vibrant and rhythmic sounds and the red silk fabric on the drumsticks flying up and down, the stage was filled with dazzling color. Accompanied by the upbeat music, practitioners changed formations frequently, one moment showing Rotating Falun, and then changing to Two Dragons Spraying Water. When the performance ended, enthusiastic applause burst out. Practitioners then came out with a "The World Needs Truthfulness-Compassion-Tolerance" banner to answer the curtain call.

One practitioner said: "Upon receiving the invitation to this large-scale performance, every one of us was very happy. We felt that this was a good opportunity to let people see the beauty of Falun Dafa. To prepare this performance, more than 40 practitioners practiced very hard on weekends and holidays. Sometime practitioners practiced outdoors in the chilly wind. Our hard work paid off, as the spectators liked our performance very much. "

The person in charge of the DAREarts Choir and the director of this evening party highly commended the practitioners' performance: "No need to mention how well their fine performance and skills are; the more important thing is that they have brought us the joy that comes from deep in the heart. It was really charming. Their smiles are unforgettable. I got the impression that they are a group of people who love life very much."