After Peach Flower Landscape came dances popular in north and northeastern China for the Gods' blessings for a good harvest and traditional street performances from central China. Also included in the program was Whirlwind, whose Western-style choreography was inspired by the Silk Road — from Buddhist sculptures in northwestern China to the beauty of India and Central Asia.
About a dozen guest artists from China took part in the performance. Ma Xingye amazed non-Chinese-speaking viewers with his kuaiban or traditional Chinese rap accompanied by percussion from bamboo chips. He could utter around 450 syllables a minute and it needed no translation to be appreciated.
The show concluded with a dragon dance that drew cheers from the audience, more than half of whom were non-Asian.
Following its Sunday premier, the company will stage New Year's-themed school time performances on Monday at Brooklyn College and Wednesday and Thursday at Queens College this week. Another performance is scheduled for February 7 at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center.
The performance is part of the Happy Chinese New Year series sponsored by China's Ministry of Culture, a campaign to celebrate Chinese New Year all over the world, said Wu Zhao, a consul of the Consulate General of China in New York. In addition, China Central Academy of Fine Arts will display works of Chinese artists at Lincoln Center on Feb 17. China's star violinist Tian Jiaxin is expected to perform at Carnegie Hall on Feb 18, Lunar New Year's Eve, and the New York Philharmonic will team up with Chinese musicians for a concert on Feb 24.
Lu Huiquan in New York contributed to this report.
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