BY JUNHAN B. TODENO – REPORTER, Marianas Variety

FALUN Dafa international artist Xiao Ping Chen visited Saipan Mayor Donald G. Flores yesterday to inform him about her various events while on Saipan.

Chen, a practicing Falun Gong member, said their group is willing to join the Liberation Day celebration.

The group is seeking the mayor’s assistance in facilitating the travel of Falun Dafa practitioners from South Korea, Japan and Taiwan who want to participate in the festivities.

She said if the Falun Dafa members from abroad cannot make it, the local group will still actively participate in the parade and the nightly shows at the Garapan Fishing Base.

Chen, who studied on Saipan and a recipient of the CNMI’s Most Outstanding Visual Artist Award, also discussed with the mayor the Shen Yun Performing Arts.

The New York-based group, she said, is the world’s premier Chinese dance and music company that has performed in over 100 cities around the world.

“I’ve seen many times of their performances. They’re the best I’ve ever seen in my life,” she told Variety.

She said the mayor saw the need for the island to have a world-class performing theater.

The mayor, according to Chen, has been getting inquiries from groups in South Korea if Saipan can accommodate big performing arts productions.

The Korean groups require a big stage, she said.

Chen said the mayor talked about the importance of bringing arts to the people, especially in a multi-cultural place like the CNMI.

She said performing arts will also help boost local tourism.

Chen invited the mayor to her art exhibition, “The Art of Zhen, Shan, Ren (Truth, Compassion, Tolerance), at the Phoenix Art Studio on Garapan St.

To read this article in the Marianas Variety website, click here.