HAMBURG—Margarethe Vogts and Stefan Darmann came all the way from the Uelzen and Lüchow-Dannenberg districts of the Lower Saxony State to see the Chinese Spectacular in Hamburg. Ms. Vogts, a real estate specialist from Dannenberg, said, "I especially loved the music. I was pleasantly surprised when listening to the music, because it was not so glaringly Chinese. Chinese music is not too pleasant to Westerners' ears. This music came through a little more on the soft side."
"The backdrops were like being in a dream and the stage design was fascinating. Overall it was a great successful evening," shared Ms. Vogt. She felt comfortable with the Divine Performing Arts artists and their performances.
She said she was "quite impressed by" the way the digital projection backdrops combined with Chinese classical dance.
"Because of the backdrop information and pictures, the laymen in the audience could understand what the individual scenes wanted to convey. I didn't find the texts [translation to the Chinese songs] on the backdrop distracting, as the backdrop pictures harmonized well with the dances and the song. Actually I found it very pleasant." Ms. Vogt mentioned the "Lady of the Moon." In the piece, Chang E's husband shoots nine suns down with a crossbow and ends the suffering of the people. She thought that "the backdrop pictures were very positive and helped the audience grasp the scene."
Deeply Comforting
In Ms.Vogt's opinion, the texts to songs provided on the backdrop were very helpful. She said, "I carefully read all of them and found it wonderful how they blended into the scene. What I read were to some extent deeply comforting and mirrored the Chinese culture, which has been suppressed for such a long time. In the end, when viewed in that context, these songs were freedom songs."
Stefan Darmann, Ms. Vogts' escort, who manages a catering business at a golf club, described his response, "I felt a little spellbound and as if I was transported into a different world for a little while. It took me out of the general stressful environment, and I was enchanted. This was very pleasant and wonderful."
He said he felt as if "I returned to my childhood, such as when my mother told me a night story or sang a song for me. A very enjoyable memory."
Mr. Darmann's favorite scenes were the dance 'Nymphs of the Sea' and the percussion, 'Drummers of the Tang Court' and 'Victory Drums'. He said contentedly, "They went through your bones and also touched ones' heart. It was a fabulous evening."
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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