STOCKHOLM, Sweden—The Divine Performing Arts Company, performing in Stockholm's Circus Theater, treated the audience to a cultural potpourri from China's 5,000 year-old history.
In the audience was Lotshon Laroos, art director for Reader's Digest. He viewed the performance with an artistic eye and said, "It was excellent! Yes, I was impressed. It was very good."
He couldn't make up his mind what he liked best, but shared, "It was very artistic. The dances and the acrobatics with the drums were impressive."
His mother, Ms. Renee Lotoshon, a retiree, who accompanied him said, "I am very impressed by the high quality and the different types of dances."
She favored the sound of the Erhu [a two-stringed instrument] and appreciated the difference from western performances—it gave her a new outlook and something to think about.
Mr. Daniel Devaldy, a 35-year old engineer with an insurance company, also shared his impressions. "Yes," he said, "I liked it very much. The show was very colorful, and the interesting thing was: the variety of music, dancing, and acrobatics. I liked the final part—the drums were very good, very different, very powerful, especially when they played together."
He agreed with the Lotoshon's that the dances were very different from Western dances, but not less impressive. "The music was very nice," he said, "but I preferred the dancing, the colors, and loved the costumes."
He admired the skill of the dancers, "It is a large dance group. What was impressive was their moving in unison and their excellent training."
Mr. Devaldy had read in a magazine that the Chinese Embassy asked the theater to cancel the show. He said, "Well, I am no longer surprised after seeing the show. Some scenes are against what is happening in China. I think China should be a democracy, so you can show what you think and what you like. I don't agree with their trying to stop this show."
Another visitor to the show shared this view, "I like it very much—very beautiful dancers and acrobatic people."
He had seen the Peking Opera when in Stockholm in 1985, and remarked, "There is no comparison between the Peking Opera and this show. This is something very different, so one cannot compare it at all. This show was created in the United States and Western countries and not in China."
Before parting he said, "It is very interesting and I think it tells the actual situation in China."
For information about upcoming Divine Performing Arts shows, please visit: www.DivinePerformingArts.org
The Epoch Times is a proud sponsor of the Chinese Spectacular. For our complete coverage please visit: http://en.epochtimes.com/features/dpa2008/
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