WASHINGTON—Ms. Qiao, originally from Changchun city in northeastern China, was delighted with the Divine Performing Arts (DPA) Chinese New Year Spectacular which she attended at the J. F. Kennedy Center for Performing Arts on Saturday.
“I felt marvelous after this wonderful performance,” said Ms. Qiao, who works at a research institute. She went on to name several pieces that she especially enjoyed.
“The dance in The Udumbara’s Bloom was exquisite with delicate costume design. The Dragon Springs Drummers was powerful and cheerful. Welcoming Spring, Monk Ji Gong Abducts the Bride, and The Monkey King Triumphs were eye-catching pieces of work.”
DPA takes it’s inspiration from 5,000 years of Chinese culture, depiction ancient myths and legends through classical Chinese dance. There are also vocal soloists and a live symphony orchestra that blends traditional Chinese and Western instruments—something Ms. Qiao appreciated.
“The music composition and the instruments matched the stories in the dances very well. I feel comfortable listening to the music, because it was very different from what they have in China. In China, the Chinese New Year shows are always the same-famous people sing some oldies,” she said.
Ms. Qiao said the singing by tenor Hong Ming was “unparalleled, the timbre was terrific and the lyrics were meaningful.” She also thought the erhu solo sounded “fantastic” combined with the piano.
“Divine Performing Arts makes us Chinese proud. Their advertisements are becoming more and more artistic every year and their shows got popular worldwide so quickly.”
Ms. Qiao saw people from different countries around her in the theater. A Caucasian girl sitting next to her was so excited that she loudly cheered the artists when they came out to take a curtain call. When Ms. Qiao asked the girl whether she knew any of the performers, the girl answered that she was simply showing her appreciation of the show. Ms. Qiao said this made her feel proud to be Chinese sitting in the theater.
Ms. Qiao talked about Falun Gong, “When I saw the program about Falun Gong, I couldn’t stop crying, and I didn’t know why. I heard about Falun Gong when I was in China, but I was indifferent. It’s now until now that I understand the practitioners were tortured because they wanted to be good people.”
Ms. Qiao said she would love to see the Spectacular again next season.
For more information please visit DivinePerformingArts.org
