(Clearwisdom.net) After Divine Performing Arts (DPA) International Company made its debut performance in Seoul, South Korea, at the Universal Arts Center on February 4th, the performances caught the attention of different segments of South Korean society, and thus triggered a DPA sensation among various members of the arts community. Mr. Lee, a famous tenor and poet in South Korea, has highly commended DPA for its music, dancing, backdrops, vocals, and the traditional Chinese cultural arts that DPA showcases. He exclaimed, "This is a miracle in the field of performance arts! Divine Performing Arts has spread the ancient Chinese traditional culture to the world."

Mr. Lee, a famous South Korean tenor and poet, highly commended the DPA performance, "This is a rarely-seen performance, and it is an excellent show!"

Tenor: This is a miracle that showcases Chinese culture!

Mr. Lee was so overwhelmed by the show, that he attended two Divine Performing Arts performances, back to back. He feels that the DPA performances are promoting the brilliance of Chinese culture and it is a miracle that showcases authentic Chinese culture.

Because he is a professional vocalist, Mr. Lee listened attentively to the four Bel Canto songs in the show. He believes that the singers sang naturally, their voices were very pure and powerful, and the lyrics were rich in philosophical meaning as well as being poetic. He said, "The female sopranos' vocal ranges are very broad, and their voices are pure, supreme, and exuberant. Just like the tenors' lyrics, their singing is very beautiful, which is somewhat different from our way of singing."

Mr. Lee feels that the music created and presented by Divine Performing Arts is not only rich in authentic Chinese qualities, but also utilizes many classical Western instruments. He further elaborated that the music that is created from this combination of traditional Chinese and Western instruments in the performance was very harmonious, "The music, dancing, and backdrops in today's performance were fused together, which is very unique."

He said that he had initially assumed that Divine Performing Arts performances just consisted of traditional martial arts or dances. He did not expect this performance to also include contemporary vocals, which is a comprehensive type of performance art in itself, and to also engage him on a profound level to appreciate classical Chinese culture in such a short time. Furthermore, he indicated that the performance is much better than he had anticipated before seeing it, "Divine Performing Arts performances are very creative. The dance dramas are really nice to watch. Bringing figures like Li Bai [a famous poet in Chinese history] and Sun Wukong [the Monkey King] onto the modern stage has given people a feeling of seeing (these beloved ancient stories) anew. Furthermore, the story of Li Bai is very touching, and especially, the group dancing is really appealing."

Mr. Lee understands and appreciates that Divine Performing Arts aims at promoting traditional Chinese culture through its performances. The cultural communities of South Korea are also trying to use the format of performance arts to extend a legacy of traditional culture. He elaborated, "China has a very ancient civilization. It is the socialist system that has caused China to become backward in its economy. However, today's performance has showcased the real face of the five-thousand-years of this traditional Chinese culture! This is a show that aims at inheriting Chinese traditions and arts and spreading the ancient Chinese traditional culture to the world."

The painter couple: The colors of DPA performances are blessings from gods

Painters Cho Huilian (by pronunciation) and Choe Taihui (by pronunciation), after watching Divine Performing Arts performance in Seoul on February 5, they exclaimed, "(It is) so beautiful that it moves people's souls!"

Choe Taihui, a painter, showed her admiration of the colors and costumes of the DPA performances

Cho Huilian and Choe Taihui are husband and wife, and both are painters. They have used their paintings to express and depict nature and human lives. Because they are artists, they are naturally good at sensing things and observing details. On February 5, they traveled from Taean County, bringing their two daughters with them to watch the show. They expressed their amazement when they saw the DPA costumes, "The golden and pink colors are blessings from gods," they said.

Mr. Cho, who has devoted himself to painting the lives of peasants as his subject matter, could hardly contain his excitement when he walked out of the theater. He said with appreciation, "Most especially, the backdrops are amazing! They are spectacular, immense, and magnificent! The costumes are also very elegant and beautiful. On the whole, it seems that the performance materialized in our imaginations via pictures. This must have taken great effort on the part of the stage designers!"

Watching the performance has left him with a very profound impression, "After watching the show, I became very familiar with the powerful messages that DPA has conveyed. However, for those who came to watch the show for the first time, they must have been shocked, because the performance is very creative, and people will feel amazement!"

Choe indicated that seeing Divine Performing Arts costumes can give people a feeling of serenity, "Just like listening to a piece of music." The costumes have let her even more acknowledge that the entire performance "Seems to enlighten people that they should not be deceived by the false façade of reality. People need to lead upright lives to get happiness."

The Director of the Folk Music Performance Troupe from the Department of Culture and Touring: I have felt the ancient Chinese culture from the dances and the costumes!

Mr. Won Chang-hyun is the Director of the Folk Music Performance Troupe of The National Center for Korean Traditional Performing Arts in the South Korean Department of Culture and Tourism, as well as being the President of the Daegeum (Flute) Music Institute. He joined the appreciative audience in Seoul to watch the Divine Performing Arts for the first time. Just from seeing DPA's authentic Chinese dances and costumes, he said he can feel the thread of ancient Chinese culture, reaching across the millennia into the present. He said, "No matter how modern society is now, people still need to take traditional culture as their foundation. So people come to watch the DPA performance, not for understanding the West, but instead for understanding the Chinese culture."

Mr. Won, being a music professional, feels that Divine Performing Arts music has many qualities. Although more modern techniques have been incorporated into the music, he said that he could still feel the beauty and elegance of traditional Chinese culture. "What I am impressed most with is, that in the music creation process, the composers must have taken great efforts. The design of the program suits this era very well. The dancers were flawless in their coordination; the whole team appeared to have cooperated very well. So both Western and Eastern viewers like the performance."

He indicated that he works for the National Center for Korean Traditional Performing Arts and shoulders the task of spreading orthodox traditional Korean culture. He is also trying to lead a modern dance troupe to visit other countries to perform programs that support a theme. He continued to praise Divine Performing Arts, "However, I have not dared to do what has been done in today's performance. It is very difficult to create a performance like this one by the Divine Performing Arts!"

February 7, 2009