SEATTLE—The Divine Performing Arts (DPA) Chinese New Year Spectacular which played at Seattle’s Paramount Theatre on Saturday delighted the audience, including Ms. Olmos who attended the evening show.
Being a musician herself, Ms. Olmos was particularly impressed with the DPA orchestra, unique in that it combines Chinese and Western instruments thereby bringing together two of the world’s greatest classical music traditions.
“All of it is wonderful—I like the way the music is somewhat contemporary but it also ties in the Chinese traditional sound and uses traditional instruments and a full-bodied string section. The percussion is excellent and I am amazed at how the dance fits ... and how it all fits together. It’s just wonderful,” she said during the intermission.
Ms. Olmos is a singer, composer, music teacher and director who has a masters degree in music education. She conducts at a big Catholic church and teaches music at a school where the students put on productions twice a year.
Ms. Olmos liked the orchestration so much because it was “somewhat epic in some ways.”
“The orchestra is fabulous—the orchestra is top-notch. It’s almost worth coming to listen as well as to watch — it is as enriching to listen to it as well as to watch the beautiful dancing. The orchestra just makes it magical and wonderful.”
The Spectacular on the whole, she said, was “grand, big, mesmerizing, dramatic ... I enjoyed the dramatic aspect, the choreography, the colors, the costumes.”
DPA takes it’s inspiration from 5,000 years of Chinese culture, with ethnic Chinese dances as well as dances depicting Chinese myths and legends. Chinese classical dance is the centerpiece of the DPA shows.
Please see DivinePerformingArts.org for more information.
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