(Clearwisdom.net) Divine Performing Arts (DPA) Chinese New Year Spectacular opened at the Kennedy Center Opera House on Tuesday evening Febuary 10 as part of its 2009 World Tour.

John Williams, a business consultant and former artist, writer and poet, said that he was impressed by the harmony and grace of the performers.

"The dancers are obviously very well-trained, very disciplined. But you don't feel the discipline so much as the beauty. There were shows about flowers, wind, and you could feel the flowers, you could feel the wind," he said.

Mr. Williams said that the performance inspired him to want to get back into the arts.

He said that through the performance, he felt the dancers expressed something much deeper than what was on the surface. "That's what an artist does, I think--make oneself vulnerable by expressing oneself with abandon, freely. It takes courage to do it and it takes grace to pull the pieces together and make it work."

Speaking of Chinese classical dance, Mr. Williams said that he feels the ancient culture of China was one that allowed people to work harmoniously together. "So you see people in the dance, individuals, but you also see the collectivity, the people together dancing. You see people working together gracefully to express beauty, is the best way to put it. It's a beautiful expression," he said.

Another audience member, Ms. Westby, a security expert, felt that the performance held a very powerful message for mankind, that freedom of expression is essential for all. "It had a very powerful message," she said.

Ms. Westby, a security expert

"The message that individual expression is very important ... Whether artistically or religiously, that every human has that right to expression. And it was a very important message that people need to understand, some of the people around the world that are not able to express themselves as freely as the dancers on the stage tonight."

She particularly liked "the ones about Falun Gong" - Heaven Awaits us Despite Persecution. Another dance, Dignity and Compassion, is set in a prison in China, where a Falun Dafa prisoner of conscience is cruelly tortured to the brink of death. The message conveyed is that terrible consequences follow from persecuting these innocent persons.

Ms. Westby also appreciated the digital backdrops. "The visual arts--I loved the visual arts with the people coming out and suddenly being on the stage. It really gave a wonderful dimension of visual and performing arts combined. I loved the visual effects with that. As well as the music. Combining the Western and the Chinese instruments."

"This is a very powerful performance that I think will really spread a lot of awareness and enlightenment and that's what it's all about--it's about enlightenment to a higher level of consciousness."

Mother and son enjoy DPA show at the Kennedy Center Opera House.

Andrew, a high school senior, and his mom, Ms. Smith, a consultant, came to the show on Tuesday night Feb. 10 because of a "strong recommendation" of someone they knew.
The two mentioned different dances that were their favorites. Andrew liked the Tibetan dance and "the spinning." He was referring to Dance of the Snow-Capped Mountain in the program, which shows male dancers vigorously celebrating the joys of the Tibetan steppes. The dancers are wearing long sleeves and colorful prayer beads.

"I think he was right, it was sort of very joyful and maybe that's what I liked about it."

The person he was referring to was Yungchia Chen, who is the principal (male) dancer for DPA. Mr. Chen was trained in Chinese classical and folk dance and ballet.

Ms. Smith mentioned Mystical Phoenix and an ethnic dance, Mongolian Chopsticks, which her son said resonated well with him also.

"I loved the women in folk skirts ... and then of course, the ribbons. I know they're not ribbons, [I mean] sleeves," she said.

The dancers in The Mystical Phoenix wear long, flowing dresses, and by their arm movements and quick, light steps, they portray the "mystical" phoenix prancing about the clouds.

Source: http://theepochtimes.com/n2/content/view/11876/

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