CHICAGO—On Saturday evening, the Divine Performing Arts Company gave their farewell performance of the Chicago Chinese New Year Spectacular at the Arie Crown theatre. Theatre goers of all age groups were delighted with the show that has been bringing new life to classical Chinese music and dance.
Cousins Jennifer Sallas, a senior at Loyola Academy, and Elizabeth Delegan, an Oak Park kindergartner came to the Chinese New Year Spectacular with their grandfather.
"I think it's great. The music is really good and the costumes are elegant and colorful," said Sallas. "It's great," Delegan chimed in.
"I really like the fan dance," Sallas said referring to her favorite segment of the show. "I just love the colorful matching uniforms."
"I liked where the boys were dancing and trying to get the book," said Delegan, describing her favorite segment.
While the production offers a flavor unique to ancient Chinese culture, various segments described the myths and legends of this magical time. These time-honored tales set to music and dance still seem to resonate with people to this day.
I didn't really know a lot of the history," explained Sallas. "I learned about some of it in school but I found it really interesting how they incorporated the dancing into it. And the music is awesome. It's very colorful and vibrant and it was very entertaining."
Delegan agreed, saying that she would try to get her parents to come to the next show.
"It was beautiful," said Russian 4th grader Amir Supikhodjaev, excited about expressing his opinion of the show.
"It was spectacular," added his mother, Feruza.
"I like the drums," exclaimed Amir, considering his favorite segment of the performance. "I mean, I like the women dancing with the cups," he said, changing his mind. "The cups didn't fall. It was like a Cinderella movie. And the music was relaxing."
"I like the dancing, said Amir's grandmother Adelaida Blyumkina, "It is so powerful and bright. The girls were so elegant—it was like classical ballet. It improves your mood when you watch them.
"We are so glad that we came to see this show. We're going to come with the whole family next year for sure."
Feruza observed that dances were reminiscent of central Asian dancing she's seen, recounting the Mongolian and Uzbek performances she'd seen in the past. "I'm happy that I brought my son here so that he can know a different culture and compare it to his Russian culture," she said.
"I mostly came here for my son; I want to expose him to as much as I can."
"He didn't want to come but now he loves it," Feruza continued. "He even hugged and kissed me and said, 'I love that you brought me here.'"
The Epoch Times is a proud sponsor of the Chinese New Year Spectacular. For other shows in the Divine Performing Arts world tour, please visit http://www.DivinePerformingArts.com.
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