(Clearwisdom.net) Just in time for the Chinese New Year, Newark residents braved the January cold to welcome Divine Performing Arts as it swept the stage at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center. "It's the first time I've seen it and I was so thrilled!" said the Supervisor of the Language Arts Literacy Program at a school in the Newark area.

The large group of students and teachers had come, not only to celebrate the Chinese New Year, but, "It's also our school's tenth anniversary this year," shared the supervisor. "It's my first time to see the Chinese New Year Spectacular, but the children have been coming every year now, thanks to one of the teachers at our school who introduced us to this marvelous event!"

"The costumes were amazing, the music, everything was fantastic. I was listening to the children reacting to the performances, and they were so excited. I think that it's so important that they learn about culture and that they can see the dancing and hear the music. They just loved it! As a reading specialist I know that all the life experiences you have actually help you to learn vocabulary. You can draw on your experiences of different things in the world and all that helps you succeed in school, so this experience alone should add so much to their knowledge and help them to go forward into the future. They are learning about the marvelous Chinese culture."

The supervisor said she would recommend that all the schools see Divine Performing Arts shows. "I would recommend it for all ages, really. I just wish that my 16-year-old son had been here to see this, too, I can't help but think that he would be amazed by everything. It was just so interesting--the stories, the explanations, everything. It was just tremendous. Thank you!"

The supervisor continued, "It's just so important for students of any age to learn about values nowadays. Every culture has values that matter and that we need to keep alive and not lose. And this is so true of the Chinese culture."

Divine Performing Arts showcases China's 5,000-year history through classical Chinese dance and vocal performances. The performances take their inspiration from this rich legacy and depict China's traditional and spiritual values to provide an experience of consummate beauty and goodness. "It's the value of keeping traditions," the supervisor said emphatically, "of having freedom, especially the Falun Gong, that people should have a right to pursue what they believe in and not be stopped by anyone and that traditions should endure and that after this world, that we can carry on and have something that matters! It's that, despite persecution and being mistreated for what you believe in, you have to stick to your beliefs. This is a very important lesson for anyone to learn!"

"Thank you so much for this experience! And Happy Year of the Ox!" she added.