(Clearwisdom.net) On May 6, 2008, the Divine Performing Arts staged their last show of a five-month global tour at the Von Braun Concert Hall in Huntsville, Alabama.
 Large audience at the Von Braun Concert Hall takes in the Chinese Spectacular |
 Huntsville audience member gets a closer view of the erhu |
City Mayor: It's So Enjoyable
The Mayor of Huntsville, Alabama, Ms. Loretta Spencer came with her friends to see the Divine Performing Arts Chinese Spectacular. Afterwards, she had high praise for the performance: "Their talents are unbelievable. Their performance is incredible. It (The Divine Performing Arts) brought us a beautiful evening. We are lucky they came to Huntsville. It is very important that Divine Performing Arts lets Eastern culture meet with the West."
 Mayor of Huntsville, Ms. Loretta Spencer |
Ms. Spencer had special a feeling for the Tang drums because her son is a drummer. "The dances are so enjoyable. 'Nymphs of the Sea' is incredible. They used fans to imitate waves; it was so perfect," she said.
Ms. Spenser thought that the traditional values expressed in the performance were wonderful. "It shows the values of the Chinese culture. Those young dancers did so well. I also liked that they projected the translation of the lyrics for the songs. It allowed me to understand the meaning of the songs, and how much they have to suffer to express themselves in China."
Immigrant from Guangdong: It Brought Joy to My Heart
Ms. Qing is originally from Guangdong Province in China. She attended the show with her daughter and two friends. "I enjoyed it very much," said Ms. Qing, "I'm very happy. Divine Performing Arts brought joy to my heart. My friends liked it too. My friend's husband is American and they appreciate ancient Chinese stories very much."
Ms. Qing's daughter, Rysa, is studying to be a nurse at the University of Alabama in Birmingham. She said, "The show was wonderful. I liked all the dances. They are so lively. My favorite was 'The Drummers of the Tang Court,' which awoke my heart."
Ms. Qing said she brought her daughter in order to let her know more about Chinese history and traditional culture. Rysa said that she thinks it was important to come. She said, "I am a Chinese too. I learned (from the show) some history, some tales about the sun and the moon. The man shot down the suns until only one was left. I heard that tale before, but did not know its meaning."
David, a friend of Ms. Qing, said that he enjoyed the show very much. "The dances and songs were excellent, so were the costumes and movements. I really enjoyed it." He added, "I was very moved by all the numbers about belief, such as that one about Falun Gong. I think those wrongs happened there because of the tyrannical government."
Dance Director: A Perfect Combination of Intelligence and Arts
The director of the Huntsville Dance Theatre, Monique Ryan and her daughter Kathleen saw the Spectacular together. Ms. Ryan highly praised the show. "I am grateful for the chance to enjoy Chinese traditional culture in the States. This is a perfect combination of intelligence and arts. It's very peaceful and beautiful."
 Director of the Huntsville Dance Theatre, Ms. Monique Ryan and her daughter Kathleen |
Ms. Ryan is a dance teacher in Huntsville. She said, "As a professional dance teacher, I admire how the Divine Performing Arts shows traditional Chinese culture through dance. It isn't easy."
She added, "Divine Performing Arts passes on the eastern traditional values, which requires that the dancers themselves fully understand the deep meaning of the culture. They are very professional and they dance with their hearts. From the smiles on their faces, I can feel that they love what they are doing."
She continued, "On the stage, I saw that they had all good values. They cooperated with each other really well. I really liked 'Nymphs of the Sea.' The background, fans, silk, and dancers' movements brought the character of water to life. I wish I could have gone up on the stage and danced with them," she smiled.
Ms. Monique Ryan especially liked the first performance, "Descent of the Celestial Kings." She said it has a very deep meaning and has a lot of messages in it. It connected Gods and human beings. She said a lot of materials can be felt but it is hard to describe with language. She found it to be thought provoking.
A Grand Global Tour
On December 18, 2007, Divine Performing Arts On Tour held their first performance of the season in Baltimore, and it has now concluded in Huntsville on May 6, 2008. During these 140 days, Divine Performing Arts has staged a total of 99 performances in North America, Europe, Asia, and Australia. The Divine Performing Arts Company is composed of two groups: Divine Performing Arts of New York and Divine Performing Arts On Tour. Together they held 251 shows in 66 cities in North America, Europe, Asia, and Australia, for a worldwide audience numbering about 600,000.
