Two teachers impressed by the final Toronto performance of the Chinese New Year Spectacular at the Sony Centre last night said they may incorporate some of the dances into their gym class.
"Spectacular. Just amazing," said Toronto teacher Geraldine Valkenburg after the performance. "The costumes were just so exquisite. Very very colourful. Much more colourful than we expected."
"I found the drumming quite fabulous. Yes, I really enjoyed the drumming," she added. Valkenburg said she was also impressed by the digital back drops that accompanied the performances and sometimes blurred the line between reality and animation.
The teacher said she could see the values of ancient China, like kindness and patience, shining through the pieces.
"I found that very interesting. I learned a lot actually too. I found it was a very refreshing performance for me in that sense. I've seen some other dancing, and this was very refreshing for me."
Valkenburg added that she was amazed by the complexity of the dances and how much flexibility the dancers had.
When asked if she would return, she said: "Oh yeah. I would have never expected this though. It was very, very well put together -- just amazing."
"I really enjoyed it."
Valkenburg was accompanied to the show by her friend and colleague Harriet Woo, a teaching assistant she works with. Woo, who is married to an ethnic Chinese man but was born in the West Indies, said the show gave her a chance to better understand Chinese culture.
"It's good for me to get into this now because he wasn't exposed to a lot of it. So I'm really enjoying it . . . He didn't grow up with the culture. So we're little by little getting into it because of our children," said Woo.
"I enjoyed it. Totally. Totally."
The pair even took inspiration from the show to do something new with their students.
"We were thinking that some of the things we could use in gym. We could incorporate it in gym, with the ribbons and the fans," said Woo.
"And some of the dance moves would be fabulous." said Valkenburg.
"Very well done. We'll come back," she added.
"Yes, yes, definitely," said Woo.
The Epoch Times is a proud sponsor of the Divine Performing Arts shows that will perform in over 60 cities worldwide in 2008. To find a show near you, please visit www.bestchineseshows.com.
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