The Essence of Classical Chinese Dance

By Zhang Tianliang, Special to The Epoch Times, Jul 26, 2007-Flash back to 1300 years ago. Emperor Zhong Zong ¹ of the Tang Dynasty (618-907 AD) is hosting a feast on January 30, in the year 707, at the Kunming Pool. With all officials of the royal court present, he asks the officials and literary scholars to each write a poem about the occasion, and to present the best poem to him.

The Emperor had a colorful tower built, and invites Shangguan Wan’er, a beauty known for her literary accomplishments, to select the best poem. Two famous poets of the time, Shen Quanqi and Song Zhiwen, are both present.

Ms. Shangguan wore a phoenix-shaped hairpin and an embroidered dress in a light fabric. She sat on the tower and her long sleeves hung down. The court assistants presented the poems. Ms. Shangguan read them and made comments on each. Those that did not meet her standards were thrown to the ground.

The officials looked up at her. As each piece drifted down from the tower, it was picked up to see who the author was. Shen Quanqi and Song Zhiwen, however, did not retrieve any pages, as each believed that his was the best. Shen said, “You and I have been rivals for a long time. This time, whoever wins should be considered the better poet. That will settle our dispute once and for all.” Song smiled and agreed.

Soon, Ms. Shangguan let go of another poem. It was Shen’s. She wrote her comments after the poem, “It looks like Shen and Song’s poems were comparable. However, the last two lines of Shen’s poem showed that he was at his wit’s end, yet Song’s poem had new ideas, as though a flock of birds just took to the sky. That’s why I thought Song’s poem was better.”

The officials read the two poems. They were well-written, with exquisite phrasing. However, Shen’s poem ended with, “This humble servant employs failed material.” while Song’s last two lines read, “No need to worry that the bright moon will fade; the pearl of the night is soon to arrive.” They all agreed with Ms. Shangguan’s comments.

Chinese culture focuses on the atmosphere. This permeates the areas of calligraphy, painting, chess, music, poetry, martial arts, and dance. Shen’s poem compared himself with “failed material,” and ended on a sad note. Song’s poem, on the other hand, introduced a new element with the arrival of the “pearl” after the moon went down. This showed his superior ability to add a new, higher meaning.

The NTDTV International Chinese Classical Dance Competition held earlier this month included many talented people with outstanding techniques. But in terms of the inner meanings of their movements, Ren Fengwu (Michelle Ren) was clearly the best.

Ms. Ren’s dance was based on the concept of a pure lotus flower in the Buddha’s pond. Her clothing was also white, symbolizing the sacredness and purity of the lotus. Her dance not only showed the realm of lotus flowers, but also reminded us of the solemnity and holiness of the Buddha’s Paradise. As the lotus flower fluttered in the breeze, we could hear the music of a different world and almost smell its fragrance. It brought peace of mind to the audience and won their respect. On subject selection alone, Ren was one step above the others.

Her perfect forms demonstrated her deep understanding of the theme. Her movements were soft and fluid, yet every form was defined and refreshing. Strength was shown in the silkiness of her moves. The transitions between positions were natural and smooth. She held a very steady standing leg stretch (please refer to this link for the movement (please visit Youmaker.com to see video of this movement ), and then immediately executed a back flip with her hands supporting her on the ground.

This movement showed people sudden but inspiring change. When she danced, although the movements were dramatic, they made the audience feel calm. Her facial expression was peaceful and unaffected, as though she was not in a dance competition or pleasing the judges, but was only interpreting her understanding of lotus flowers through mature skills.

Even after she finished dancing, the energy and feelings from the dance were still in the air. The spirit of the dance was truly beyond the form.

Besides subject selection, Chinese culture also places importance on subtlety. Legend has it that Emperor Gao Zu ² of the Han Dynasty (206 BC–220 AD) initially didn’t have faith in Han Xin’s ³ ability to lead an army. The Emperor gave Han a very small piece of fabric and told him that he could lead as many soldiers as he could draw on the fabric. Instead of drawing soldiers, Han drew a running horse; the back half was hidden behind a wall, so only the first half was shown. One could see that the hands of the person riding the horse were holding a banner for a battle, even though the person himself could not be seen. Although Han had not drawn one complete person, the battle banner inferred that there were thousands of troops behind the rider.

During the Song Dynasty (960–1279 AD), Emperor Hui Zong ⁴ held an examination for the Royal Art Academy. The test was to draw an ancient temple hidden deep in a mountain. The top prize went to a painting that showed layers upon layers of mountains. A monk was at the foot of the mountain, drawing water from a creek. Although the artist did not actually show an ancient temple, everyone could tell that the temple would naturally be found deep in the mountains.

The same principle applies to Chinese Classical Dance. If the movements are too similar to martial arts, ballet, or gymnastics, if they are too hard or too soft, or if the transition between the quiet and dramatic was too obvious, then the dance lacks the required subtlety.

Chinese culture has always encompassed many areas. When a person handwrites a character, or even makes one move, others can obtain all kinds of important information about this person. This is of course even truer in a classical art form such as dance. A dancer will reach a plateau if she is able to improve technical skills but lacks a deep understanding of the Chinese culture. If a dancer lacks personal cultivation and understanding, she will be unable to successfully portray characters from the Heavens or those who have good moral qualities, such as loyalty and chastity.

Although techniques in dance are important, improvement in one’s morality is what truly resonates with the kind nature of those in the audience. The journey of moral improvement is endless. The Tao School believes that “everyone can become wise emperors,” and the Buddha School believes that everyone can cultivate to become a buddha. This means everyone has the potential to be enlightened, just as every dancer is able to reach that high realm. However, the process is one of arduous cultivation. This is the same process that established the essence of Confucianism, Buddhism, and Taoism, the foundations of the 5,000-year culture of the Chinese nation.

The process is an endless road, one that must be traveled by those who seek the highest realm in Chinese Classical Dance.

[1] Emperor Zhongzong, Tang Dynasty
[2] Emperor Gaozu, Han Dynasty
[3] General Han Xin
[4] Emperor Huizong, Song Dynasty

- Original report from the Epochtimes 

24 Hours: Celebrating ancient China

By 24 HOURS NEWS SERVICES, Jan. 3, 2007-

It’s a snapshot of the millennia of artistic China, a global cross-cultural pageant of a concert that in the next three months will be seen by 100,000 people globally.

It is the Chinese New Year Spectacular, a highly-charged, vividly-coloured entertainment of dragons, drums, dance and costumes, plus vocals and instrumentalists. And, true to its multi-cultural mission, it also includes some ballet of the western variety.

In Vancouver for a second year, a matinee has been added to the one-day event at the 2,500-seat Queen Elizabeth Theatre. The aim of the show’s sponsor, New Tang Dynasty TV, is to expose society to traditional cultures, according to Patrick Dong, show coordinator and NTDTV executive director in Vancouver.

“It is a truly cross- cultural event suitable for all the family,” he added. Central to the show is the belief that China’s ancient culture was a gift from the heavens and so deserves its “land of the divine” accolade underscored by the themes of love, compassion and virtue in the triumph of good over evil.

The Chinese New Year Spectacular is at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre tonight with a 2 p.m. matinee and evening performance at 8.

Tickets, from $30, at 604-683-2202 and www.ticket.ntdtv.com/Vancouver.

( read from the 24 Hours Vancouver website )

Vancouver Sun: Year of Pig offers performance feast

Lloyd Dykk, Vancouver Sun, Tuesday, January 02, 2007-

CHINESE NEW YEAR SPECTACULAR

Queen Elizabeth Theatre

Wednesday, 2 p.m. and 8 p.m.

$30 - $80

604-628-0303 (Chinese)

604-628-1620 (English) or 604-280-4444 (Ticketmaster)

- - -

According to the Chinese calendar it is the Year of the Pig coming up, which signifies good fortune, kindness, honesty and tolerance. And you may want to feast on the entertainment of the second annual Chinese New Year Spectacular when it comes to the Queen Elizabeth Theatre for two shows Wednesday.

It sounds like the sort of extravaganza you’d normally see just a few blocks away at the Centre for Performing Arts in Vancouver: A celebration of what’s known as China’s golden age, the Tang Dynasty, a remarkable time in China’s 5,000-year history.

The three-century-long Tang, with present-day Xi’an as its then most populous city in the world, reached a high point of cosmopolitan culture and prosperity, largely the result of military exploits. From this show, purportedly based on the Tang, you can expect epic tales, dragons, drummers and beautiful dances from about 100 young performers in all, most of them overseas Chinese who live in New York. But it might be a good idea to try to see the Tang through a 21st-century filter.

In its four years of existence the show seems to have been a success, growing from appearances in five cities at its beginning to this year’s 28 cities across four continents, a run that will total 67 performances. (In Canada it goes to Ottawa, Montreal and Toronto after the Vancouver appearance.)

It’s put together in New York in a production by New Tang Dynasty Television, based in New York. It was ranked No. 7 in Billboard magazine’s top 10 shows in 2006, based on shows that ran last year at New York’s Radio City Music Hall. (… read more from Vancouver sun’s report )

Plum Blossoms, First of Four Noblemen, in Chinese Arts

By Tony Dai, to NTDTV-

Plum blossom, orchid, bamboo, and chrysanthemum were adored by the ancient Chinese literati and artisans, and referred to as the “Four Noblemen.” This was because they were used to portray noble characteristics, such as pureness, humbleness, and uprightness.

The first “nobleman” is plum blossom which begins blooming in the harshness of winter and continues into early spring.  It is seen as bringing vigor and vitality to the world.

The dance “Plum Blossom” in the 2006 Chinese New Year Global Gala truly brought the spirit of this flower to the stage.  The performance captured the essential nature of plum blossoms, “a fragrance coming from the bitterness and coldness they experience.”

The dance themes included: blossoming, braving snow, and heralding the arrival of the spring. Gracefully movements were used by the dancers to depict the peaceful blossoming of plum flowers in the cold winter. Suddenly, a thunderstorm appeared blowing fierce cold winds. The heart of the story is displayed as the dancers represented the inner strength and unyielding courage of plum blossoms. Then, the storm stopped and the sunshine finally burst forth.  After experiencing the ordeal, the plum blossoms became even more beautiful.

The beauty of plum blossoms are not just due to their color or that it is the only flower blossoming in the winter. It is also because each gentle petal has grown through the cruelty of the winter storm, and represents the essence of the process of growth.

In the traditional Chinese style of writing, the character for plum blossom was endowed with unique inner meanings and expressed the virtues of courage, strength, and taking fame and wealth lightly. It is said that an artist who creates a fine portrait of plum blossoms should have the noble characters of plum blossoms.  So, when painting this flower an artist strives to express their unyielding courage and noble character. Many painters in China love to draw plum blossoms, but not everyone of them does it well.

Shi Zhongren, a monk during the Song Dynasty, was well known for his plum blossoms paintings on thin silk using black ink. It is believed that the reason he painted plum blossom well was because he was a cultivator with a noble personality.

The master of painting this flower was Wang Mian, an artist in the Yuan Dynasty.  Wang stated that paintings were poems with no words, and poems were paintings with words. Different from Shi’s style with a few branches and plum flowers, Wang’s paintings contained many branches and plum flowers, expressing uprightness and enthusiasm.

Other artists in the Ming and Qing Dynasties were also famous for their paintings of plum blossoms. Their painting styles may vary considerably, but they shared one similarity  noble characters.

[- Author Tony Dai is an art collector, critic, and writer.]

China: “Shenzhou” - “The Divine Land”

Names tell a tale, they say.  Of the many names for China over the centuries, one stands out for all that it promises to tell: “Shenzhou” - “The Divine Land.”

Stretching across the canvas of Chinese history is a profound inclination, apparent in fields as diverse as urban planning and internal medicine, towards a world beyond, to a greater higher presence.

The very earliest works of Chinese art, drawn with remarkble care, depict godly figures and acts of veneration. In the earliest dynastic times, rulers considered heaven’s will fundamental to the well-being and integrity of the state.

The earliest extant Chinese writing, carved into tortoise shells, was solely devoted to discerning the will of a greater spiritual power. Entire cities were laid out so as to align with a higher, invisible order.

Chinese fiction and the novel, meanwhile, were born of Buddhist moral tales. Chinese metallurgy was interfused with, and often driven by, Daoist visions of alchemically transmuting the body into divine substance.

In almost every facet of China’s traditional culture can be found a wish to align human activity and thought with that of a greater spiritual presence or order, called variously “Dao” (the way), “Fa” (the law), “Tian” (heaven), “Shen” (god), or “Li” (principle).

This applied to carpentry and architecture, the martial arts, poetry and painting, astronomy, acupuncture, the festival calendar, and even military strategy, to name a few.

Hardly any aspect of China’s classical culture can be understood absent this. For this is the cultural legacy of “Shenzhou” - China - “The Divine Land.”

( From: NTDTV website,  The Divine Land )

Related:
-  The Mystery of Chinese Culture & Art

Story, Meaning and Tradition of the Chinese New Year

Year- “Nian”,  name of a strange beast

Passing of Nian- “Guo Nina”

Celebraing the Chinese New Year- Celebraing the Passing of the strange beast Nian

In ancient China there was a strange beast called “nian” with a long head and sharp horn and it was extremely fierce. “Nian” dwelled deep in the sea the whole year, but on every New Year’s Eve it would climb onto the shore to devour livestock and harm humans. Because of it, on every New Year’s Eve, all the villagers would take their old and young deep into the mountains to hide from harm from “nian.”

On New Year’s eve one year, as the people were all busy collecting their possessions in preparation for their retreat to the mountains, a grey haired man appeared in the village. He asked an old woman to allow him to stay in her home for just one night and assured her that he would certainly chase away the beast. No one believed him. The old woman urged him to go to the mountains with the other people to hide. The old man steadfastly refused. Seeing that he could not be persuaded, the villagers departed without him.

When the beast arrived at the village to wreck havoc as usual, it was met with a sudden sound of exploding firecrackers. “Nian” was shivering all over and dared not proceed any further as it was most frightened by red color, flames, and explosive sounds. At that moment the large door opened wide and the old man, wearing red clothes, laughed heartily. “Nian” was startled. It turned pale, turned tail and fled!

On the next day, as the people returned from deep in the mountains, they found the village intact and safe. They suddenly realized what had happened. The old man was a deity who had come to help the people drive away the beast “nian”. They also found the three precious items that the old man had brought to chase the beast away. From then on, on every New Year’s eve, every family would hang up red banners, set off fire crackers, and light their lamps the whole night through, awaiting the New Year. The custom spread far and wide and became a grand traditional celebration of the “passing of nian” (”nian” in Chinese means “year”) for the Chinese people.

Chinese people refer to the period of time from the twenty-third day to the thirtieth day of the twelfth lunar month right before the Chinese New Year as the “small nian”. Every family is supposed to clean their surroundings in preparation to receive the New Year.

Besides cleaning the surroundings, each Chinese family is also supposed to make the New Year’s purchases for the upcoming festival, including chickens, ducks, fish and meat, fruits, and sweets. Every family also prepares presents to bring along when they visit their friends and relatives. They also buy new clothes for the children.

In the evening of New Year’s Eve, the whole family gathers together. In Northern China, dumplings are eaten. The Chinese word for dumpling, “jiao” and the Chinese word for “together” are homophonic (same sounding), so the dumplings symbolize the family being all together and happy. At the same time, “jiao” also means the coming of the New Year. In Southern China, people eat the sweet New Year cake (made from glutinous rice flour), which symbolizes sweet life and making advancement during the New Year (in Chinese, the Chinese word for “cake” and “making advancement” have the same “gao” sound). At the stroke of twelve at midnight, every family starts lighting firecrackers!

On the first day of the New Year, people wear their new clothes and wish their elders a happy New Year. When the children wish the elders a happy New Year, they receive some money for the New Year. On the second and third days, people visit their friends and relatives to wish them a happy New Year.

The streets during the New Year period in China are generally thronged with people. At some places there are special events such as lion dances, dragon dances, flower markets, and temple fairs.

After the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, which is the day of the Lantern Festival, the Chinese New Year celebrations are considered to be over.

Chinese Culture: Arts, Poem, Painting and Color

The Meaning of Colors in Ancient China, NTDTV-

Chinese culture created a close and binding relationship between color and ceramics, murals, paintings, and poetry…even city planning. After the Ming Dynasty, only the Emperor’s relatives could have homes with red walls and yellow roof tiles. His subjects lived in houses with blue bricks and roof tiles. However, carved beams and columns used rich hues. Many buildings used black tiles and white walls.

In the Dun Huang Caves, dating back 1500 years, there are more than 10,000 mural fragments of various dynasties. Each dynasty used different color combinations. Murals of the Northern Wei Dynasty incorporated red and brown, supplemented by blue and black. Tang Dynasty murals featured yellow. Song Dynasty murals were dominated by blue and green.

Highly-skilled Chinese paintings express the artist’s idea through the ink’s thickness and thinness. The practice is described as “ink holds five colors” and “shinning brilliantly without the usage of bright colors.” “Ink holds five colors” refers to five ink shades—charred, thick, ash, thin and clear. In a painter’s eye, the color of water is clearly different in each season. In “Lin Quan Gao Zhi” (A Book about Paintings), Guo Xi wrote, “The color of water is green in spring, bluish green in summer, aqua in autumn, and black in winter.”

As recorded in “Selections of Famous Paintings of the Tang Dynasty”, Emperor Xuan Zong praised Li Si Xun’s landscape paintings with their strong green and blue hues as “the best landscape paintings in the nation.” The ancient Chinese people were good at extracting colors from minerals and plants. This type of painting is often outlined with brilliant paints extracted from various minerals such as Shi Qing (azurite), Shi Lu (mineral green), Shi Huang (mineral yellow), Zhu Sha (cinnabar), Yan Zhi (cochineal), Qian Fen (lead powder), and Ni Jin (golden paint). With these advances in painting, the result became bright and rich.

Chinese poems and paintings share the same origin. The relationship is described as “a painting recites a poem and a poem draws a painting.” Poets could expertly describe color and poems often alluded to vibrant colors. Poet Cui Hu created wonderfully colorful scenes as shown in two lines from his poem, “Ti Du Cheng Nan Zhuang (“For the Southern Village in the Capital”). These lines express the beauty of colors for people to ponder for thousands of years:
Last year inside this court,
peach flowers reflect each other in red.

Poet Bai Juyi wrote in “Verse on River Mu,”

Paving in water is a streak of the setting sun,
turning red is the rustling river

A“silk radical” character attached to another Chinese character can describe different shades of the color of silk. According to “Shuo Wen Jie Zi” (Explaining Characters and Expressions), 24 characters describe colors of silk fabrics including red, green, purple, deep red (crimson), bright red, dark red (dark purple), light blue, orange red, white, and so on. From this, we can surmise the variety and richness of silk fabrics from the silk manufacturing industry in ancient China. During the Warring States Period, lacquerware decoration reached a highly skilled level. The state of Qi was especially well-known for its brightly colored silk products. Many of the silk goods unearthed from ancient tombs have maintained their original colors of brown, red, black, purple, and yellow.

Chinese pottery and lacquerware uses rich color even more extensively. The formulation of richly colored glazes infuses these pieces with a brilliant and lustrous appearance. From the renowned tri-colored glazed pottery of the Tang Dynasty (Tang San Cai) to five-colored glazed pottery, from the celadonware to white glazedware, from white and blue porcelain to ceramics with lustrous glazes, color plays a key role in the creation of pottery. Ancient Chinese pottery-making reached its zenith in colored and black pieces. Chinese lacquerware had exquisite patterns and dazzling color.

Ancient Chinese people understood that color feeds the spirit and expresses the depth of human experience. The 2007 Chinese New Year Spectacular celebrates color in all it intensity and richness through lighting, costumes and scenery and harkens back to the traditional meanings of color.

Celebrate color! Celebrate a spectacular Chinese New Year!

- For the Celebration in Vancouver, Canada, please check out this post:

Video: Chinese New Year Spectacular coming back to Vancouver

 

China’s Dynasties, Clothing and Color

The Meaning of Colors in Ancient China, NTDTV-

Each dynasty in China’s long history gave its own significance to various colors. In every dynasty, the clothing for each official rank had their own color.

To support the Zhou Dynasty’s ceremonial rituals, Confucius defined yellow, blue-green, white, red and black as standard colors. He related them to benevolence, virtue and kindness and incorporated them into formal ceremonies. People of the Zhou Dynasty honored red.

During that time, people incorporated colors when naming seasons and directions. A blue-green sun represented spring. Its main guardian god was a green-blue dragon, and its direction was east. Summer’s color was red, guarded by a red sparrow, and its direction was south. Autumn was white, guarded by a white tiger with a westerly direction. Winter was represented by black, guarded by a black tortoise, and its direction was north.

Qin Shi Huang unified China in 211 BC and began the Qin Dynasty. He followed his ancestors’ traditions, distinguished black from white, respected the virtue of water and “decided that October was the beginning of winter and its color was a superior black.” When he ascended the throne, “the color of his clothing and flags was black.”

Because of its association with gold, yellow began to symbolize the royal court after the Han Dynasty. The emperor’s subjects could not wear yellow clothing.

Although regarded as a secondary color, purple signifies a propitious omen and solemnity. Among the Chinese people, there is the saying “purple sparrows in beams, carries mud in pairs, coming and going.”

However, during the Han Dynasty, bright purple was often regarded as an extremely precious and rare color. In the Tang dynasty, officials above the rank of Fifth Class as well as member of the royal court wore purple clothing. A purpose border on clothing often made an elegant touch in apparel.

Chinese Culture: Five Elements…Five Colors

The Meaning of Colors in Ancient China, NTDTV-

For more than 2000 years, the Chinese people have used brilliant colors. Today in modern China, red is a very popular color. However, contrary to popular belief, ancient peoples did not pay special attention to the color red

The Chinese character for “color” is 颜色 (Yan Se). In ancient China, however, 颜色 carried a slightly different meaning. It more accurately meant “color in the face.” For instance, “Verses of Chu State” (Chu Ci Yu Fu) might use the expression “Yan Se Qiao Cui” which means that one appears weary. In “Explaining Characters and Expressions” (Shuo Wen Jie Zi), “Yan” means the area between one’s eyebrows, and “Se” means qi, or energy. The commentaries added by the noted scholar Duan Yu Cai says, “Shame, regret, joy and worries are called “Yan Se” because “one’s heart reaches qi and qi will reach the eyebrows.” So it’s clear that “Yan Se” referred to color in one’s face and not colors in general

“Yan Se” began to mean all color during the Tang Dynasty. Noted Tang Dynasty poet Du Fu, in his poem “The Bottoms of Flowers,” wrote: “Know good colors clearly, and do not be content with sand or mud.” The Chinese idiom “Wu (five) Yan Liu (six) Se,” which is used to describe many colors, also suggests colors in general.

Traditional Chinese physics taught that the five elements are water, fire, wood, metal and earth, in that order. They correspond to black, red, blue-green, white and yellow, respectively.

Ancient Chinese people believed that the five elements made everything in nature. Five thousand years ago during the reign of Huang Di (known as the Yellow Emperor) people actually worshiped the color yellow. From that period forward, through the Shang, Tang, Zhou and Qin dynasties, China’s emperors used the Theory of the Five Elements to select colors.

Because people understood that “colors come naturally while black and white are first,” they gradually established a relationship between colors and the principle of the five elements, which guided the natural movement of heaven and the heavenly Dao.

People chose clothing, food, transportation and housing according to natural changes in the seasons—from spring to summer and autumn, and then to winter. Traditional Chinese views regard black, red, blue-green, white and yellow as standard colors

The I Ching, or Book of Changes, regards black as Heaven’s color. The saying “heaven and earth of mysterious black” was rooted in the observation that the northern sky was black for a long time. They believed Tian Di, or Heavenly Emperor, resided in the North Star.

The Taiji symbol also uses black and white to represent the unity of Yin and Yang. Ancient Chinese regarded black as the king of colors and honored black longer than any other color. Lao Zi said that “five colors make people blind,” so the Dao School chose black as the color of the Dao.

White represented gold and symbolized brightness, purity, and fulfillment. White also is the color of mourning. Ancient Chinese people wore white clothes and hats only when they mourned for the dead. That tradition is still practiced today.

The Chinese people, both ancient and modern, cherish the color red. Red is everywhere during Chinese New Year and other holidays and family gatherings for it symbolizes good fortune and joy. Unfortunately, since the Communist takeover of China, red has been used by the Chinese Communist Party to represent danger, blood, violence and radical actions.

Blue-green indicates spring when everything overflows with vigor and vitality.

Yellow symbolizes the earth. The old saying, “Yellow generates Yin and Yang,” meant that yellow is the center of everything. Yellow was the symbolic color of the five legendary emperors of ancient China. Placed above brown, yellow also signifies neutrality and is considered the most beautiful color. Yellow also represents freedom from worldly cares and is thus esteemed in Buddhism. Monks’ garments are yellow as well as Buddhist temples.

Color embodies an even richer culture in Chinese folk traditions. Yellow is the color for emperors. Yellow often decorates royal palaces, altars and temples. Yellow also represents being free from worldly cares. Therefore it is also a color respected in Buddhism.

Video: Chinese New Year Spectacular 2007 coming back to Vancouver

These years, The Chinese New Year Spectacular globe tour show become an important platform for people living outside China celebrating the Chinese New Year and appreciating Chinese traditional culture and arts, which featuring world-class performances of both Chinese and Western traditional artistry.

“The performance was absolutely stunning. The Chinese costumes wore by the dancers were gorgeous and the choreography is exceptional.” Said on Houston Chinatown Web site.

Have a look at the video then you will find out what does it mean.

For the year 2007, Vancouver is the first stop for the globe tour show, and it’s the 2nd year for the Spectacular to come back.

It’s an truly events not to be missed. The reason:

- Top 7th International Show, ranked byUS Billboard Magazine, in Feb. 2006
- Top theater, Queen Elizabeth Theatre, downtown, Vancouver
- Holiday time: 2:00 pm & 8:00 pm, Wednesday, January 3rd, 2007
- Best price: start from $30.0 CAD

Chinese people believe their ancient culture was a gift from the heavens, so much so that traditional Chinese culture is often simply referred to as the culture of “the land of the divine.” The Lunar New Year, in particular, is a time of reflection and paying tribute to ones ancestors and to the heavens.

This is an great oppurtunity for you, the Vancouverites, to spend the Christmas/New Year holiday on, with your family/your friend/the one you love, to enjoy, to share, with all other people around the world.

Event: 2007 Chinese New Year Spectacular

Time: 2:00 pm & 8:00 pm ( two shows a day)

Date: Wednesday, January 3rd, 2007

VENUE: Queen Elizabeth Theatre
600 Block Hamilton St. (Hamilton @ Georgia Street)
Vancouver, BC, Canada V6B 2P1

PRICES & SEATING CHART

Regular: $30 $40 $50 $60(Sold out) $80 (Sold out) (plus $2 Theatre Facility Charge)

Group Tickets:

Number of Tickets	Discount
6-10	10% off
11 - 20	15% off
21 - 50	20% off
51 or more	25% off

HOW TO BUY TICKETS

Call Ticket Hotlines
604.280.4444 (Ticketmaster)
604.683.2202
604.628.1620 (English)
604.628.0303 (Chinese only)

Order Online
Ticketmaster

NTDTV Official Ticketing System

For details, please check: Chinese New Year Spectacular (Vancouver) official website

Merry Christmas and happy New Year!