School Principal from China: "Revitalising Chinese Traditional Arts and Creating a New Era"

On December 25th, Christmas day, the Holiday Wonders show, which has been performing at the Beacon Theatre, brought a smile to the face of the audience in New York. They seemed quite gratified by this Christmas "present "and to have been able see the show in person.

Early Christmas morning, calls to the ticket hot-lines started coming in non-stop. More than an hour before the show, the audience began lining up outside the theatre. Before the show began, spare tickets were hard to come by. The audience that night was made up of many different ethnicity's from various cultural backgrounds and ages. They had high praise for the show and thanked the Divine Performing Arts for an unforgettable Christmas.

On Christmas day, ex-military submarine engineer Olga Weiss attended the Holiday Wonders ninth show in New York. She was reluctant to leave the theater after the show. She said every performance was beautiful beyond compare.

Yeshira University students Avital Gozhenko and Yakov Waxman were pleasantly surprised to see such rich and colourful displays of Chinese culture. Ms. Gozhenko said she had never seen a show that presented a country's culture in so many different ways. She was even afraid to blink. "Chinese traditional culture is very rich and beautiful."

Alan Dombrow, a financial bookkeeper at a government department (middle), attended the show with two friends. Carol Adnew (left) works as a crime scene investigator, and Brenda Tarker (right) is a peace volunteer. For Mr. Dombrow, "The Power of Awareness" left the deepest impression. It portrayed the plight of Falun Gong. He described the performance: "Amazing! The remarkable choreography of this dance really imparted the significance of the story. I am amazed at those people who can stand up to protect themselves [their rights], and obtain freedom."

This family escaped to America from Poland 27 years ago. They so enjoyed the show that they were reluctant to leave right away. The husband said, "'The Power of Awareness' displayed how righteousness can win over evil forces. After the evil Communist Party has vanished, China will gain beautiful freedom, and the Chinese people will live wonderful lives."

Andre Luiz Araujo is a young journalist from Brazil and also an interpreter. "The Fruits of Goodness" was his favourite dramatic act. "Through what was depicted in the performance, people can find the reason to live."

School Principal from China: "Revitalising Chinese traditional arts, and creating a new era"

A school principal from China who was in America visiting relatives from China said that the creative concept and spirit conveyed by the show was strong and righteous, giving people a feeling of brightness and hope. "Its cultural foundation is very strong and profound." He thought that the artists had inherited the traditional values and explored Chinese traditional arts in their endeavour to create a new era.

"Mr. Guan's [vocalist Guimin Guan] majestic style has not changed, and his voice is as good as it has always been. The themes of "Truthfulness, Compassion, Forbearance," which the show displays, create a deep impression in people's minds,and makes you ponder. I congratulate the artists. It is an excellent show." His favourite dance was "Water Sleeves," which he described as, "An ancient Chinese traditional dance. It was performed beautifully."

Ms. Rina Abadsieua from Bulgaria is studying for a PhD degree in philosophy and religion. She accompanied her husband, Mr. David Barsky from Canada. Mr. Barsky commented that they liked the show very much, especially the Chinese traditional dance and martial arts. He thought that every aspect of the show, including the dances from the cultures of various Dynasties, the costumes, and the music, were very traditional. He said, "Shows of this calibre should be held more frequently."

Such a Magnificent Sight, Truly Excellent

Originally from Guangzhou, Ms. Tiana Zhong, a resident of Brooklyn who has been in America for nearly ten years, was very pleased after she saw the show. She thanked the organisers,commenting that it was a magnificent sight and a truly excellent show. "My friends saw your show and said it was great, so I was envious. Today I also had the opportunity to see it, and I'm very glad I did," she said.

Real estate agent Tony Song resides in Queens, New York. Tony and his daughter, Angel, thought the show was very successful. They have seen every show in the past few years and said they will do the same next year. Tony's favourite part of the production was "Descent of the Celestial Kings." Angel particularly liked "The Fruits of Goodness." Both father and daughter were enchanted by "Drummers of the Tang Court."

To the Audience of Holiday Wonders: "See you again at Radio City in January 2008"

Many in the audience expressed their desire to see the Chinese New Year Spectacular at Radio City Music Hall early in 2008.

Maroa Tersa's family came to the show from Thames Island. They are frequent visitors to Broadway, but said they had never seen such an excellent production. They said the show was fantastic, with beautiful costumes, touching melodies, and elegant dances that were hard to describe, not to mention the traditional Christmas music. "We are very thankful,. We will come again. I will recommend the show to anyone and everyone."

Manhattan residents Francine Waldbaum and Ianna Villanweva are office secretaries. Their evaluation of the show was "Extremely fantastic." They particularly liked the Tang Dynasty dances and drumming. They look forward to attending the Chinese New Year Spectacular at Radio City.

Kity Chen thought the show was great , and her brother-in-law's family from New Jersey really enjoyed it. Her brother-in-law was sorry he did not bring along their granddaughter, so he has already planned to bring her to the show at Radio City in the new year.

Manhattan resident Ramon works as a magician and attended the show with friends. They thought the production was extremely beautiful and artistic, with bright and colourful costumes. They were very pleased and promised to see the performances next year.