(Clearwisdom.net) On March 25, 2008, the Divine Performing Arts presented its third Chinese Spectacular in Sweden. Dr. Masako Ikegami, a professor of conflict management and head of the Asia-Pacific Studies Department at Stockholm University, was in the audience. She expressed her high regard for the show: "Presenting different aspects of traditional Chinese culture in an entertaining format worked very well. I truly enjoyed it. There was also the element of tradition. It was a good arrangement and a marvelous performance."

The Academic World Should See the Spectacular

Professor Ikegami said, "The show provides an introduction to Chinese and Asian culture and is helpful for people who don't understand them. I will recommend the show to those who haven't a chance to learn about Chinese culture. It is very important for academia to spread true, traditional culture. I think those in the academic world should see the Chinese Spectacular."

Beijing's Totalitarian Nature Destroys Traditional Culture

Referring to the Chinese Consulate's interference with the show, Professor Ikegami said, "I heard about it. Beijing set up the 'Confucius Institute,' which has nothing to do with traditional Confucianism. This academic outreach program the Chinese government is trying to promote is an abuse or misuse of traditional culture. If you look at the program you will see it has absolutely nothing to do with Confucius. What they are teaching is Chinese language and the current PRC's (People's Republic of China) view of history and culture."

Professor Ilegami also talked about the nature of communism, "When I see a film about the Cultural Revolution or the communist revolution crushing traditional culture, I must say that traditional culture is always a part of a peoples' identity. Communism, fascism, or any form of repressive regime--their goal is to erase each group's identity. They want to input their own ideology. Throughout history, all totalitarian or communist regimes or any form of repressive regimes, the first thing they always do is to crush the real, authentic traditions and communities and try to replace them with their ideology."