(Clearwisdom.net) Divine Performing Arts (DPA) New Year Spectacular's final presentation at the Kennedy Center Opera House on February 15 left many in the audience hoping for the New York-based company to return to Washington. The audience applauded throughout the performance.

Many at the show had never experienced anything like the DPA show, a rediscovery and renewal of humankind's true, rightful heritage presented through Chinese classical dance and music.

Among them was a former consultant Mr. Hoteling and his nine-year-old granddaughter, Julia, who is learning tap dancing.


Nine-year-old Julia came with her grandfather Mr. Hoteling for the show (NTDTV)

"It was good, I liked it. I liked how they had all those ribbons and how they did different dances with them," the young dancer said.

Mr. Hoteling agreed. "Very nice show, we loved the show very much. Very descriptive of the culture and ... some things that have happened historically--we just liked it very much. We understood the suppression of the people and the rising up of the people up into the culture, and coming into the modern times," he said.

"I liked the piece where the mountain falls down and nobody believed the man." Monk Ji Gong Abducts the Bride brings alive the beloved Chinese figure who did good works in unusual, if not down-right crazy-seeming ways. In this vignette, the monk foretells that a landslide is imminent but local residents attending a wedding do not heed him. Mr. Hoteling noted that only after the monk's prediction comes true, do the villagers believe him.

Also in the audience was Ms. Erickson, a fitness instructor, who said, "It was fantastic--the costumes were unbelievable; the choreography was so exact, so perfect--I was amazed the whole time. I took away a much greater understanding of the Chinese culture and the history--the spirituality that I didn't understand before, and I am grateful," Ms. Erickson continued. "The values of the Chinese are renowned worldwide. We can take away from this, that our values, our cultures, are all connected in a greater way."


Ms. Erickson, a fitness instructor, enjoyed the show very much

Ms. Erickson enjoyed every performance and also loved the fan dance, and the opening, saying, "[I] loved the drums--it was all just fantastic--very, very moving. I wanted to get into the whole spirit of the occasion and celebrate with Chinese people their history."

Another audience member, hair stylist Mr. Connelly, came specifically to bring his seven-year-old daughter and he said, "Aside from being beautiful and breathtaking in terms of color and movement, I think it was great for her to see--or anyone here, to see two things: One was the diversity of tradition and how many traditions there, how specific they were, and the desire for compassion and hope in the future. I think each of those things are very constructive."

He continued, "You'll have greater compassion if you have greater understanding where people come from, and there's greater hope for the future if you can bring that compassion forward. It communicates that very effectively in a really visual fashion. She loved it as well, by the way."

Although Mr. Connelly admitted that he didn't know much about dance, he did appreciate both its subtlety and power: "The work looked very intricate and ... given how much movement was required and how sometimes the movement was borderline athletic--tumbling and things of that nature--the fact that everything remains perfectly in place and looks flawless means someone worked very hard to do that," he added.

Washingtonians and people from as far away as New Jersey bought tickets for the show that saw a packed house. Some even came twice to see the show.

Mr. Schaaf, a musical director, was really excited to have garnered a ticket for Sunday's show. He was interested to learn more about China's traditional culture. "I've always had somewhat of an interest in Chinese, not knowing a whole lot about it." Mr. Schaaf said it was a great opportunity to learn more about China's culture and to gain an insight into contemporary issues. "I'm really happy that I did because it gave me a lot more insight into the Chinese culture. But more than that, it really told the story of what is going on today in China, such as the persecution and all that kind of stuff. It was very moving tonight," he shared.

The entire show was amazing, he said, "The dancers are really good, and wonderful singing, and hearing the orchestra with the outstanding Chinese instruments mixed in. It was really quite a cultural experience. Boy, I recommend it to anybody."

Present-day China came through loud and clear and was appreciated by many in the audience, including Mr. Schaaf, "The message that came across through the whole was very strong about the persecution that is going on--that was very clear as the stories were told. Tonight, sitting next to me was a Chinese family--a husband, wife, and two children. At some point, I turned to him. I think it was after the first act, after we saw the persecution of that family, and I spoke to him about that.

"He said he and his wife were both refugees, they've been in this country since the 1990s. His wife can never go back to China. She and her whole family are being persecuted. We had a really interesting conversation. We made friends, and will get together and talk about this some more."

The audience was filled with people of different backgrounds, cultures, and countries. Mr. Hoque, who moved to the United States from Bangladesh, is a electrical engineer. He brought his adopted daughter, a school pupil, who recently arrived from Bangladesh. He said, "We know China. It's a big country, a culturally, very rich country. But we never really had the opportunity to see something like this [show] in China. It was very impressive. I was awed. The music, the choreography, the dancing, and the whole company are absolutely magnificent."

Mr. Mozharul said, "She recently came, and I am giving her the opportunity to see different cultures and civilizations. It was absolutely magnificent. We enjoyed it thoroughly."

Mr. Horowitz, a senior fellow and director at a think tank, saw the show and was moved to the point of tears, saying, "I cried a few times--it was just quite wonderful." It was the second time Mr. Horowitz had seen the DPA perform. Compared to the one from previous years, he said the show had become more powerful.

Mr. Horowitz said the show had a depth to it that would be unexpected for those expecting to see a dance spectacular. "What I saw was power, honesty, and integrity in addition to artistry, and I am very grateful for that. It's a wonderful afternoon--very moving."

Dr. Manzoor, a veterinarian, and his partner Lubna were also in the audience. The show was "one of the best ones we've ever seen," said Dr Manzoor. He said the messages from the show, however, would be what he would take away with him: "Humanity, love, peace, hard work."

Lubna said she was impressed with the hard work that had gone into the show, saying, "It's very well organized, that's the best performance ... beautiful costumes and beautiful work. Everything was excellent. We really enjoyed it."

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Category: Shen Yun Performing Arts