“I have been in Germany for over seven years, but I have never seen such moving traditional Chinese performance” Mr. Zhang Weiting the Director of Taipei Tourism Agency, Taiwan Ministry of Transportation and Communications said after seeing the Gala Spectacular in Frankfurt on the 16th of February. He said, “I would like to express my respect for Shen Yun for organising such a big performance group”.

The second and last Gala Spectacular show by the Divine Performing Arts Company in Duisburg’s Marientor Theatre was performed on Wednesday February 14th, 2008. The audience was very taken by the show that presented art inspired by gods with their perfect dance, music and song performances by fifty male and female artists.

On Tuesday, February 13th, the opening night of the Divine Performing Arts Chinese Spectacular began at 8pm in Duisburg. Around fifty male and female artists performed a breathtaking, colourful and touching performance for the entire family and brought to the audience a touch of the true and profound Chinese culture.

The Jahrhunderthalle, a multifunction art and conference centre in Frankfurt, won German’s best conference centre award due to its unique software service and hardware infrastructure. The Divine Performing Arts group on tour from America staged its second performance in Europe here to an enchanted audience.

In the history of China, stories about of Gagaku, songs that helped people get rid of illnesses and keep fit, were heard from time to time. There is an old saying in China: "Merit Music and Gagaku are useful to people's physical and mental health". Many westerners think that classical music can help people keep emotional stability and help to stabilise a patient's condition. Miracles of illnesses being dispelled after watching the Shen Yun Chinese Spectacular have been heard in the Shen Yun Performance Group’s tour across the world in the past two years. In the first concert performed at Duisburg Germany by Shen Yun Performance Group a reporter encountered such a case.

In September 2006, the literary work “‘What Kind of God’. A Survey of the Current Safety of China’s Food” was short listed for the Letter of Ulysses Award for the Art of Reporting 2006. The report related the current situation of the safety of food in China, and its author, Zhou Qing, consequently received attention from the international community. “What Kind of God” has already been translated into many languages, with the Japanese version reaching a towering 50,000 copies on its first publication.

On the evening of February 16th, 2008, the Divine Performing Arts held its first Chinese Spectacular show in Frankfurt, Germany. Ms. Zhang Jie, from China, said, "I could not see such a performance in China. Most shows in China are commercial. The pure culture shown in tonight's performance is not found there." She was touched most by two performances in the show, "Several performances touched me, including, 'The Loyalty of General Yue Fei'. Everyone knows loyalty to the nation. But people forget about it or do not like to mention it. The other was the performance about Falun Gong. China is persecuting it, and this is not acceptable."

On February 13th, 2008, the Divine Performing Arts (DPA) premiered in Duisburg, Germany, the very first stop of its European tour. The President and Vice-President of the European Parliament, as well as many other European political VIPs sent support and greetings to the Chinese Spectacular. The show won enthusiastic applause. Many in the audience said they would recommend it to their family and friends.

Beatrice Mellinghoff is an editor of Boolibri Magazine in Ruhr and her husband Peter Lihs is a salesman. After watching the Chinese New Year Spectacular, Beatrice said the show was very impressive and was touched by the beautiful legends of ancient China. Her husband said that the show had very deep connotation and its meaning was far-reaching.

During intermission, business owner Dieter Röhlen said that he felt the performance was very good, and interesting. The historical stories, beautiful costumes and wonderful dancing made him feel relaxed. He thought the best performance was "The Risen Lotus Flower," about Falun Gong practitioners. He said that the theme reflected the current reality and that it was meaningful.

On February 2nd, 2008, an International Truthfulness Compassion Forbearance Art Exhibition opened in an exhibition hall of a private gallery in КРАСНОRРСК City in СHENРB Region, Siberia. Before that, the exhibition was held at the national Cultural Historical Museum for two weeks and attracted a lot of attention from local media and the general public.

From the 11th to the 15th of December, 2007, the “Truthfulness, Compassion and Forbearance” Art Exhibition was held at the Mediatheque in Dole, a city in Jura Province in eastern France. The exhibition, hosted by the Falun Gong Association of Jura Province, was supported by the Mayor of Dole and Members of Parliament. Many media also reported the event.

On December 14th, 2007, a female resident of Ely, who has long been concerned about China's human rights and the persecution of Falun Gong in China, organised the "Truthfulness, Compassion and Tolerance Art Exhibition" in Ely, Cambridgeshire. All of the many works on display were created by artists who practise Falun Gong.

The practitioners demonstrated the five sets of Falun gong exercises, exhibited reprints of paintings from the Truthfulness, Compassion, Forbearance International Art Exhibition, exhibited photos, taught people how to fold paper lotus flowers and did Chinese calligraphy. The Falun Dafa stand looked very nice and attracted many people.

The Large Health Fair in Oslo, supposedly the biggest in Europe when it comes to the number of exhibitors and offers, took place from the 16th of November to the 18th of November. Falun Gong practitioners participated at the Fair with their own stand and three paintings from the Truthfulness, Compassion, Forbearance International Art Exhibition.

From November 9th to 11th, an international art exhibition was held in Salzburg. Artists from Europe and Asia displayed paintings, drawings, and sculptures. More than ten thousand people attended. Many said that Falun Gong practitioners' works were different from the others and they could feel the peaceful and benevolent energy in them.

On 28th October 2007, following an invitation from Falun Gong practitioners in Nordrhein-Westfalen (Germany), the European Celestial Marching Band participated in a parade and gathering in Düsseldorf. The band, consisting of Falun Gong practitioners from many European countries, demonstrated the beauty of Falun Dafa.

The Truthfulness, Compassion, Forbearance International Art Exhibition was held St Paul’s Church in Cambridge on November 8th. “The benevolence of Falun Gong is truly a contrast to the evil which is persecuting them. This contrast is reflected in many of the paintings here today," said the event organiser. "We hope these paintings inspire peace and justice.”

After a day’s exhibition, the exhibition organiser was very touched: “Today I suddenly realised that the more people learn the truth, the weaker the Chinese Communist regime becomes. If people around the world all know the truth, the Chinese Communist regime would not have the ability to carry on this persecution. This is the largest significance of our holding this art exhibition.”

From October 8th-14th, 20 prints of oil paintings, drawings and Chinese silk paintings from the Truthfulness, Compassion, Forbearance International Fine Art Exhibition were displayed at the Desmond Tutu Centre, University College of St Mark and St John, Plymouth. Students and staff at the university were invited to view the paintings and the local newspaper reported on the exhibition.

The opening ceremony of the “Truthfulness, Compassion, Tolerance International Art Exhibition” sponsored by Mayor Roland Kern, took place on September 7th 2007 at 7:30pm. Mayor Kern stressed in his opening speech that this incredible exhibition was discussed by the city’s officials under the theme “Art is Tolerant” and allowed to proceed by the members.

During “Truthfulness, Compassion, Tolerance International Art Exhibition” in Sofia, Bulgarian practitioners organised a presentation of Falun Gong and a demonstration of the five sets of exercises in the club “Photo reporter” in the Ministerial Council. Several hundred invitations were sent out and detailed information was sent to the media.

Falun Gong practitioners held a photo exhibition with the title "The Journey of Falun Dafa" at their local university after participating in the Hamburg Cultural Festival's grand parade. The exhibition of photographs and text depicted the benefits of practising Falun Dafa and exposed the Chinese Communist Party's brutal persecution.

On August 14th 2007, the week-long Cultural Festival began in Sweden’s second largest city, Gothenburg. Falun Gong practitioners demonstrated the five sets of exercises and taught them for free in the Botanical Gardens, where most of the celebration activities were held. The exercise teachings attracted a lot of adults and children alike.

On the evening of August 24th 2007, invited by the organizers of the "Night of Art" in Helsinki, Falun Gong practitioners participated in an activity held in the Kannelmakeen Library. Practitioners demonstrated the five sets of Falun Gong exercises, performed a dance called "Lotus Flower" and distributed Falun Gong materials and beautiful paper lotus flowers to the audience.

All who saw the exhibition shared the same feelings: they were strongly impressed by the beautiful art and condemned the persecution. Many people signed the petition calling for end to the persecution in China and thanked the practitioners for having the courage to organise such a remarkable exhibition. They said they would recommend it to their friends.

As soon as the band turned started playing, they immediately attracted attention in all directions from a large number of people. They were cheerfully watching and enjoying the performance including some Chinese revealing gladness in their eyes. People accepted leaflets about Falun Gong and postcards introducing the band.

On 5th August 2007 the annual Edinburgh Festival Cavalcade was staged once again in the UK. The Falun Gong group, which was formed by UK Falun Gong practitioners and the European Divine Land Marching Band, gained warm applause from the crowds all the way. This is the sixth time UK Falun Gong practitioners have taken part in this parade.

The “Truthfulness, Compassion, Forbearance International Art Exhibition” held its opening ceremony in Cambridge on 14th August. The Mayor of Cambridge, Miss Jenny Bailey, gave an opening speech, commending the virtues of Truthfulness, Compassion and Forbearance and wishing the exhibition complete success. Many members of the public, including Cambridge MP David Howarth, came to show support and take part in the opening ceremony.

This is the sixth year that Falun Gong practitioners around Hamburg have joined this activity. People could learn the Falun Gong exercises from practitioners and learn to fold paper lotus flowers. This proved to be extreme popular and the stand was always crowded. Every time the exercises were demonstrated, people showed great interest.

The art works were created by outstanding artists from different backgrounds. These artists obtained great improvements in body and spirit after practising Falun Dafa. Using traditional art techniques to present brightness, purity and compassion, they gave form to their understanding of life and their experiences of practising Dafa. Through their art works, they presented the yearning for goodness and harmony.

Falun Dafa practitioners from Poland and Germany were welcomed by event organizers to attend the Tall Ships Races 2007 in Szczecin, Poland. The organizers expect around 1.5 million visitors. Practitioners saw this as an excellent opportunity to let lots more people know about Falun Gong and the persecution against practitioners in China.

On the evening of July 5th, 2007 an international art exhibition entitled “Zhen, Shan, Ren” officially opened in Graz, the capital of Steiermark province. The “Ars Cara” arts and culture club put on the exhibition - their motto is “Arts for Human Rights”. Ars Cara had great success showing the same exhibition last year throughout Austria. It was supported and recognised by many people.

"I feel the power of truthfulness, benevolence and forbearance in the exhibition!" Swedish Congresswoman Eva Selin Lindgren talked about her feeling at the opening ceremony of the international "truthfulness, benevolence and forbearance" art exhibition held in Gothenburg. The artists in the exhibition are all Falun Gong practitioners.

On May 1st, Labour Day, a rally called “May 1st without Communism” took place in the Czech capital Prague. The intention of the event was to expose the real nature of the world's communist regimes. The Confederation of Political Prisoners and a “T-shirt against Communism” initiative was a feature of the rally.

From April 19th to 25th 2007, Falun Gong practitioners in Cambridge held an art exhibition comprising of work created by artists who are also Falun Gong practitioners. The exhibition is entitled the International ‘Truthfulness, Compassion and Tolerance’ Exhibition and was held in St Laurence’s Catholic Church. This event was fully supported by the church, politicians and artists. This is the fourth time this internationally renowned exhibition has been held in Cambridge.

It has been four weeks since the opening ceremony of the International Truthfulness-Compassion-Tolerance Art Exhibition took place in the citizen’s hall of the Saxon Parliament in Dresden. This exhibition drew the attention of many people. Visitors have been deeply touched by the deep inner meanings they see in the pictures, but they were shocked when they heard of the brutal persecution against the peaceful Falun Gong practitioners, a persecution that has been perpetrated by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) for eight years.

A month before the Spectacular began, Ms, Xu, whose age was, more or less, the same as Ms. Sun, lived at her daughter’s house. Ms. Xu, who was similarly elderly, came to the city to promote tickets for the Spectacular. Ms. Xu got up at seven in the morning every day. She just had instant noodles and then went out. She did not come home until midnight. When she was back, she had instant noodles for her dinner. Ms. Sun did not say anything. Before her daughter and son-in-law, she praised Ms. Xu: “For the sake of others, such a spirit of enduring hardship is so valuable, I do admire her!”

On entering the glass doors of the Saxon Federal State Parliament building, what comes immediately into view is a huge portrait of a Buddha with a compassionate smile. This art work was painted by Professor Zhang Kunlun, a Falun Gong practitioner in Canada. It is one of the works displayed at the Truthfulness, Compassion and Tolerance Art Exhibition held at the Saxon Federal State Parliament in the State Capital Dresden.

The “Truthfulness, Compassion, Forbearance” Art Exhibition was held in Amstetten. Members of the “Coming for You” Choir assured a festive ambiance during the opening. The visitors were surprised that choir of Austrian singers performed songs in Chinese. The impact of this was shown by the guests’ complete silence and total attentiveness to the exhibited pictures.

On February 27th, 2007, the first performance of NTDTV Chinese New Year Spectacular drew successfully to a close in Berlin. Both the Chinese and the German audience highly praised the artistic conception as well as the performances. The great hit made by the Gala has spread by word of mouth among the Chinese community in Germany.

“I appreciate New Tang Dynasty Television for providing us with this opportunity to see such a wonderful performance. I have totally changed my attitude toward life and come to know the true meaning of life,” said a Chinese person, after seeing the last show by NTDTV’s Divine Performing Arts in Berlin, Germany on February the 28th 2007. He is not the only one to say so.

On February 24th, the NTDTV Chinese New Year Spectacular made its debut in Paris. The Spectacular presented an audience of over 7,000 with pure and genuine Chinese culture and art. In turn, the audience expressed their appreciation with strong applause, unremitting enthusiasm and even tears.

NTDTV’s Chinese New Year Spectacular shows, which just drew to a close in Berlin, attracted the German media’s attention. More than a dozen media outlets covered the event, where they saw firsthand genuine traditional Chinese culture. President of the German Federation of Journalists and reporter Mr. Michael Konken gave high praise to the show.

The four performances of the NTDTV Chinese New Year Spectacular in Europe gave 14,000 people an opportunity to learn more about genuine Chinese culture. The genuine Chinese culture without the CCP culture moved the audience, especially Chinese people living overseas, who highly praised the show.

New Tang Dynasty's Chinese New Year Spectacular that had just caused a stir in Paris, moved to Germany on February 27th 2007, to hold the first performance in the historic Internationales Congress Centrum in Berlin. Nearly 3,000 audience members from nearby Berlin appreciated the pageant of Oriental Art.

Michel Meyer, manager of the French number one public broadcasting group Blue Colour station, said, “This Gala had melted together with historical stories, martial arts, dance and all these exquisite performances, I can describe it with words from mysterious and perfect to outstanding.” He reiterated that he also likes martial arts and Chinese culture. He also expressed that, every singer’s technique was excellent, he enjoyed it very much.

On 24th February 2007, two consecutive performances of the Chinese New Year Spectacular drew to a successful close in Paris. Warm reaction from the audience reflected the show’s powerful impact on Paris, the international capital famous for the arts. The brilliant performance opened a brand new door to different meanings of an ancient culture.

On the afternoon of February 24th 2007, the NTDTV Chinese New Year Spectacular was held at the Grand Amphitheatre of the Palais des Congres de Paris. The world art capital was moved by this grand presentation of Chinese traditional culture. The wonderful performance won acclamations from the nearly four thousand spectators."Mr. Aung Ko said, "Today's performance includes everything - human rights, freedom, and art."

On February 10th 2007, when the European Falun Gong Divine Land Marching Band made its debut on Berlin’s Unter den Linden, the magnificent resounding music attracted a lot of people’s attention. The band, consisting of one hundred and fifty Falun Gong practitioners from about twenty European countries, was established in October 2006.