Extravaganza provides rare glimpse of Chinese culture
by Kristine Berey
Growing up in her native China, Betty Chen remembers how pervasive and ubiquitous the presence of the Chinese Communist Party could be.
The school curriculum strictly reflected communist ideals. “We would salute the party leader every morning as though he were a god,” Cheng recalls. Although the melodies children would sing were traditional, the words would be rewritten, to encourage allegiance to government ideology. Dancing and singing all had a military character, designed to raise what the government considersed ideal citizens of that society. According to The Epoch Times newspaper (theepochtimes.com), since 1999, the practice of Falun Gong, a spiritual practice based on ancient values, has been outlawed and its followers persecuted.
With the approach of the 2008 Olympic Games, scheduled to take place in China, the eyes of the world are turning eastward. The emerging great economic power we so want to please is inexorably falling under scrutiny. Reports of human rights violations, repression and censorship are slowly coming into mainstream consciousness, thanks to individuals like Gao Zhisheng and others devoted to what Cheng calls “the values we have lost.” At extraordinary cost to his own and his family’s personal safety and liberty, the human rights lawyer struggles to keep the international community abreast of the generally unknown reality of people’s lives in China.
For the past four years, the New York based Tang Dynasty TV (NTDTV) has presented a remarkable performance of dance and music. The extraordinary multi-cultural event brings to life the traditional legends that have shaped the heritage of this ancient and glorious civilization. The performance, featuring 66 artists, spectacular sets and sumptuous costumes, will play in 26 cities around the world to 100,000 people. Last year’s extravaganza, presented at New York’s renowned Radio City Music Hall, was ranked 7th of the top 10 shows that year by Billboard Magazine. This year, for the first time, the show is coming to Place des Arts on January 13 and 14, in anticipation of the Chinese New Year. A time for families and friends to gather and celebrate their cultural heritage, the Chinese New Year is the most important holiday for Chinese people around the world.
Ironically, this celebration is not an experience people living in China would be allowed to enjoy, says Cheng. “The show tells how China, as a country, came into being. But under the present Chinese government, everything pertaining to traditional Chinese culture is blocked. Traditional Chinese values are based on Buddhism, not Communism.”
Alluding to the Grand Tang Dynasty (618-907 A.D.), a glorious time in China’s history that laid the foundations of Chinese civilization, NTDTV (www.ntdtv.com) is an independent, non-profit television network, established by the Chinese diaspora. Their mission is to provide uncensored information to help people interested in China understand what’s happening in that country right now. The television station reaches 200 million people and is available by satellite.
