Divine Performing Arts’ First Performance of Chinese New Year Spectacular Moves Brisbane Audience (Photos)

On March 17, Divine Performing Arts presented the 2007 Chinese New Year Spectacular
at the Conservatorium Theatre, South Bank, Brisbane. Nearly one thousand audience
members from Brisbane watched the Spectacular. At the conclusion of the show,
the audience gave lengthy warm applause and were reluctant to leave.

Divine Performing Arts had two shows at the Conservatorium Theatre, the first
performances in the Southern Hemisphere after the troupe toured eighteen cities
and presented forty-seven shows in North America, Europe and Japan. Local
political VIPs, diplomats in Australia, and Chinese-Australians watched the two
shows and had high praise for the performances.










Professor Chiu Chui-liang (left), Research Councilor for the
University of Queensland and Director of the Taiwanese Association of Australia,
and the president of NTDTV Australia take a picture together at a cocktail party



“Distilled the important meaning of life”



Professor Chiu Chui-liang, Research Councilor for the University of
Queensland and former consultant for national policy of Taiwan, and director of
the Taiwanese Association of Australia, said that the performance distilled the
important meaning of life, such as the value of life, what humans live for, and
how humans should live together.


He feels that modern society is a world of chaos. Chinese society is full of
moral crises and there is no trust between people. He believes the performance
is significant in that it expresses the meaning of life.


He indicated that from an artistic standpoint the show is very highly
professional, including the integration of costume, dance, and music. The most
righteous and graceful side of Chinese traditional culture was presented through
the dances of different ethnic groups, which suggested the high standard of the
performance. The audience felt the connotations of traditional Chinese culture.
China is composed of not only the Han race, but other races, traditional
cultures and religions.


Professor Chiu said that he enjoyed seeing different cultural performances,
such as the dancing of Mongolia and Tibet. Chinese traditional culture,
religion, and values draw attention in Western society. He felt that the
performances presented these values from different angles comprehensively and
with a high artistic standard.


He said, “Traditional Chinese culture has a long history. Many different
connotations are passed down through dynasties and generations. Many were
destroyed during history. This show gathers the essence of the traditional
culture and merges it into the whole world. I hope that the whole world can see
this show. It is a cultural exchange for the whole world. It is most
important.”


“Feast of spiritual culture”





Tien Chung-kuang, Director of the Taiwan Economic and Culture
Office in Brisbane, watches the show

Tien Chung-kuang, Director of the Taiwan Economic and Culture Office in
Brisbane, watched the Spectacular. He said it was a wonderful show, presenting
the broad and deep traditional Chinese culture through dance, costumes and
music. “I believe that it is a feast of spiritual culture for all the
audience. I feel it is very good. Thank you. Especially the dances, 'A Dunhuang
Dream' and 'Resounding Drums', each performer was full of delight and had a
smiling face. It is very good. All the performers delivered their message
through their performance.”


Very beautiful and characteristic of Chinese culture”





Consul of the Netherlands Kasper Kuiper said that this was a nice show and
one could understand some of the current situations in China through the
graceful and professional dancing. He said he enjoyed the performance very much
and felt that the whole show was very beautiful and characteristic of
traditional Chinese culture.


“All the music and dancing was beautiful and splendid”





Vice-Consul Megan Hunt of the United Kingdom


Vice-Consul Megan Hunt of the United Kingdom said she was very pleased to
watch the show. The music and dancing was beautiful and splendid. She especially
liked the “Mongolian Bowl Dance.”


“Learned about traditional Chinese culture and art from the show”





Maria Gacia, an officer from the Mexican
Consulate


Maria Gacia, an officer from the Mexican Consulate, said that she enjoyed
each performance in the Spectacular. She said that all the costumes were so
colorful and each number was performed on a grand scale and so professionally.
In addition, from the show, she learned about traditional Chinese culture and
arts.



“One doesn't often see such a high-level performance in Brisbane.”



Doctor Lu Yongjie of the Brisbane Chinese Association said in an interview
during the intermission, “Wonderful. The program is so rich, including the
well-designed backdrop screen and costumes. One doesn't often see such a
high-level performance. Thank you.”


“The performance is very good”


Mr. Liu Dawen, known as the father of Brisbane Chinatown, said, “The
performance is very good. They must have put forth a lot of effort. The costumes
are so beautiful and the dancing is very good.”


“This performance displays the essence of traditional Chinese culture”





Mr. David Hinchliffe, Deputy Mayor of
Brisbane


Mr. David Hinchliffe, Deputy Mayor of Brisbane, praised the show highly when
addressing the NTDTV cocktail party. He said that all art performances should be
educational. This show has significant educational meaning, yet it also gives
people great enjoyment from a purely artistic point of view as well. Mr.
Hinchliffe said that the best way to learn about Chinese culture is to learn the
essence of traditional Chinese culture. His said that this show displays the
essence of Chinese culture, no matter whether solo performances, dancing, or in
other areas. Each performance is the best that Chinese people can present to the
world.


My child has never seen such a performance of traditional culture.
Thank you.”





Lord Mayor Campbell Newman of Brisbane and
his family watch the performance


Lord Mayor Campbell Newman of Brisbane said during an interview that his
wife, child and he were very pleased to watch the performance. Everyone was
happy to be there. He said, “My child has never seen such a performance of
traditional Chinese culture. Thank you.”


“The show with most inner meaning in half a century”


Mr. Chen Baotong, a Chinese man from a cultural circle in China and now
living in Australia, said that in the past half a century, this was the first
show to present recollections and yearning for traditional culture. He said,
“Today's show has rich inner meaning and really presents traditional
Chinese culture. Each performance has the same goal — to have people's spirit
purified, to have people feel the brightness, righteousness, nobility, and great
power of kindness and grace.”


“The whole show is pure and full of grace. The skills of the
participants are excellent and showed the best of traditional Chinese culture
and connotation. The stories of Mulan and Yue Fei are interpreted again through
the excellent performance of the dancers. The traditional Chinese virtues of
loyalty, righteousness, and kindness are promoted and spread. This is a pure
truth, a kind and graceful art performance without the influence of Chinese
Communist Party culture. It truly presents and explains the essence of
traditional Chinese culture.”


“The more you watch it, the more you experience the grace of the performance”


Bishop Phillip Aspinal said, after watching the show, that it was wonderful.
The music and dance impressed him. The program paid attention to traditional
culture. He said, “I did not know much about Chinese culture. After
watching the show, I learned a lot. The more you watch, the more you experience
the grace of the performance.”


The show is very moving”





The editor of the Indian Times in Queensland, and his
wife


“Those who didn't come to see the show don't know what they missed. I
feel that the program is very moving and really makes one feel uplifted.”


“I felt familiar with the first performance, 'Creation.' It has
similarity to Indian culture. So I understood it right away. I was
delighted.”


“Very good and enjoyable artistic performance”





Professor Barbara Broom, Department of Music, South Queensland
University


Professor Barbara Broom, of the Department of Music, South Queensland
University, said that the show helped her experience a sense of gracefulness.
She said that the music and dances are beautiful and splendid. She felt that it
was a very good and enjoyable artistic performance. She pointed out that she
especially liked the solo on the Chinese musical instrument, the Erhu.
She hopes that Divine Performing Arts will perform in her hometown next year.



High Praise for Sold-out Shows



All tickets for the three shows of Divine Performing Arts in Queensland,
including the two in Brisbane, were sold out before the show. The audiences gave
long applause and were reluctant to leave. After the show, some audience members
excitedly discussed the show, and had group photos taken outside the hall. Upon
being interviewed, many audience members said that they were impressed with the
unconventional performance with its rich inner meaning and well-designed stage
effects.


Three teachers had come to see the show together and said that the whole
performance was marvelous. One of them said, when the curtain opened each time,
she wondered how marvelous the next performance would be. They said the host and
hostess worked very well together, and all of their introductions made those who
don't speak Chinese understand the program content.


Nurse Sarah Fideles said, “These performances brought me to a spiritual
place that my heart yearns for. When I was young, I had a wish to go to a
beautiful world. Today's show brought me there.”





Philippine nurse Shirley and her husband

Philippine nurse Shirley and her husband watched the show. She has lived in
Australia for 32 years. She said excitedly, “The performance is wonderful
and beyond my expectation. The colorful costumes and dancing of the young
performers creates an uplifting feeling. I may not be familiar with the
background stories of the dancing, but I felt that the content is very
righteous.”





Mr. Li from Hong Kong

Mr. Li from Hong Kong highly praised the show. He told the reporter, “I
have lived to an advanced age. This is my first time to see such a pure
performance without Chinese Communist Party culture. It is wonderful. Seeing
such pure, traditional Chinese culture, I see the future of China.”





Greg Dean, resident of Gold Coast, Queensland

Greg Dean, a resident of Gold Coast, Queensland, said, “Gorgeous. I
don't have any word to express it. It is marvelous! It is the best show I have
ever seen. Wonderful. Everyone was very good. I cried during several of the
pieces.”


Michelle and Uma, residents of Gold Coast, indicated that they were delighted
and the performance was wonderful. They will recommend it to their friends.


Farial Sakal, born in China and immigrated to Australia at four years old,
said, “I felt so happy seeing the performance. It seems that I returned
home.” When asked about the tears on her face, she said, “Sure, sure.
I was moved into tears.”


Finnish-Australian Puula Miettinen mentioned the opening performance,
“Creation,” and said that she liked this piece very much. She has
visited China. When she heard the melody on the Erhu, enormous mountains
in China appeared in her mind. Tears filled her eyes.


Ms. Li, who has lived for more than twenty years in Australia, said,
“The performance is wonderful and very graceful. I especially liked the
performance of the Erhu solo. The dancing is based on 5000-year-old
Chinese court dance. If there is a performance in another province, I will
invite my friends to see it.”


Mariann Bray and her niece Taya came to watch the show. She said that the
program was outstanding in its spiritual realm. She noted that the songs
stressed inner peace.


Mr. Huang Zhuorai, President of NTDTV Australia, said, “I hope that
Chinese people and the Western community will have a deeper understanding of the
essence of traditional Chinese culture and art through watching the Chinese New
Year Spectacular.”


Divine Performing Arts will perform in Gold Coast on March 18, the last show
in Queensland. After that, the troupe will bring Chinese myths and legends to
more audiences in Canberra, Melbourne, and Sydney.

Posting date: 20/Mar/2007
Original article date: 19/Mar/2007
Category: Australian News

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