(Clearwisdom.net) On the evening of February 9, 2008, the Divine Performing Arts Company held their last performance of the Chinese New Year Splendor at Radio City Music Hall in New York. In its 15-show run, the Chinese New Year Splendor attracted many artists who gave the show high praise and commendation. Mr. Hung-Ju Chou, a senior interior designer in New York, is one of them.
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Mr. Chou is also a Tai Chi master, who learned from "First Sword on Earth" Mr. Lui Kwok-chuen. Mr. Chou is a low-key person, who rarely participates in social events or gives speeches. Although he knew a little about the Divine Performing Arts before, he found that there were many surprises as he watched the New Year Splendor. He was pleased to be interviewed after the show to share his impressions about the evening's performance.
Divine Performing Arts Sets an Orthodox Example for Human Cultural Arts
Mr. Chou said that the first thing that moved him about the Divine Performing Arts was that they have surpassed the current popular arts and pop culture, and have set an orthodox example for human cultural arts.
He said, "I came to New York many years ago. My wife and I both work in interior design. Many financial companies and theaters, including Radio City, are our customers, and we are very familiar with various popular arts in New York. There is a very bad trend in popular arts these days, which are declining and degenerating. All are chasing new breakthroughs in sensory stimulation. For a while, all the advertisements on the streets showed nudity. The same with performing arts, almost all have been looking for those subjects. This trend started in the 80s when MTV appeared. People's senses have been saturated, like being bombed to the point of exhaustion. It seems there have to be newer, more surprising stimulations to satisfy peoples' increasing sensory desires. This trend still continues."
Mr. Chou feels that the Divine Performing Arts is like a clear stream, flowing in a totally different direction than the popular culture. They are trying to enlighten people to find eternal values, and help people to find their origins. Judging from the audience's warm reaction, from these fifteen shows at Radio City Music Hall in the "Art Capital of the World" - New York, there is no doubt that Divine Performing Arts succeeded.
"Anything that Has Spread Widely and Endured Prolonged Tests Must Have the Best as Its Foundation"
Mr. Chou believes that although many things are not universally applicable, such as the spread of some religions that do not have deep and rich roots or a good culture as their background, anything can be widely accepted. But in order to endure prolonged tests, it must have a foundation that is deep, and very good.
He said, "I always meet mainland Chinese who say something about [a spiritual belief] along the lines of the Communist Party. I will then ask, where do you find fault with it? In fact, you think it's not good or non-existing, but it has been existing, it is just that you didn't see it, or didn't recognize its goodness. This is my big impression today."
The Divine Performing Arts Surpasses Race, Religion and Belief
A few months ago, Mr. Chou read an article in The Economist, that discussed how in the 70s, religious groups were quickly shrinking due to attacks by technological development and the trends of popular culture. People thought religious and spiritual things would be buried in the past. Yet less than thirty years later, religion and spirituality have not only survived, but have come back worldwide. He said, "Especially in mainland China, under the Communist regime's high pressure tyranny, the revival of faith and spiritual pursuits is faster than the experts imagined. This is another understanding that Divine Performing Arts stirred in me."
Mr. Chou witnessed both Easterners and Westerners enjoying the message that the Divine Performing Arts conveys, despite their different religious backgrounds. He said, "At the beginning, I thought maybe it was because people in New York are more open-minded. In a relatively closed society, people would probably draw a line immediately, '[saying] you are this religion, and we are that religion.' But when you extract the common values, you would find that there is not much difference."
Mr. Chou believes that today's Divine Performing Arts revives Chinese traditional culture through the medium of performing arts, and that they are bringing back eternal values to human beings, which surpass different religions and different beliefs, and enable all people to accept these values with an easy, open attitude. He believes that Divine Performing Arts signifies the return of common virtues.
(To be continued)
