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translated from...Youth Times newspaper…2010-01-03

Tonight's Wonderful Performance Given by American Dancers (Original)
Yesterday they had a "competition" with Youth Times' readers in dance previously

It's said that there is no boundary between music.Yesterday afternoon,during the meeting between Youth Times' readers and YEA which was held by the newspaper and Hangzhou Grand Theater,young people from two countries who did not know each other before interacted excitedly together impelled by music.Finally,all the young people even formed a circle and competed hip-hop with the energetic African drum sound.The whole environment is rather fervent.

American Youth Ensemble of Atlanta(YEA) was founded in 1990.It is an organization which offers young people free trainings on performance and art.YEA has been awarded “Coming Up Taller” award from the President’s Committee for the Arts and Humanities and has given performance to more than 1 million audience in America,Europe,Africa.This is their first trip to China.23 young people of YEA will give a performance of school music and hip-hop culture in Hangzhou Grand Theater tonight.

　　In order to communicate with each other between two countries without difficulties,10 lucky readers which were selected by Youth Times can speak English very well.Some are white-collars in foreign-invested enterprise,some are young students in the college and some even have had cultural exchange in the US before.Perhaps people in Hangzhou are shy because at first the communication was not very smooth though they are good at English.By contrast,guests from the US were very active and  turned from a guest into a host to ask questions to readers related to China,such as which kind of music do Chinese young people prefer;is there any professional artistic performance school in Hangzhou.And one of them asked curiously that didn't you listen to traditional music since when she was in the shop in Hangzhou,all the songs played were European and American pop music and she though young Chinese people listened to Chinese traditional music.  

These kinds of questions have aroused Youth Times' readers' interests and they thronged to answer them.A beautiful female white-collar even sang a traditional Yue play "Butterfly Love" and people screamed by the wonderful song.The American guests then introduced an African drum brought from the US.The kind drum is decorated by tracery and unlike Chinese gong and drum,it is not played by drumstick but by hands' soft beats.By beating softly,dynamic rhythm can be produced.After American drummer's improvisation,a senior college student from Zhejiang University showed a part of popin.This college student will study interpretation in the US in June this year has aroused all young people's enthusiasm of dance and readers' nature has been set free.All of them formed a circle and began to dance,including "Nobody" which is quite popular in China now,Michael Jackson's famous moonwalk,high challenge hip-hop and so on.All young people are exceedingly happy.

President of Arcomgroup,Glendon Thompson who was in charge of the cultural exchange said all the performers of YEA were very curious with Hangzhou.On the first day when they arrived in Hangzhou,they did not only have rehearals but also went to shopping in the silk market.They learned how to bargain by using caculator.A girl has spent 100 RMB on a cotton nightgown.And the interpretor LvBingbing smiled,we have arranged them to watch a new Hangzhou local Yue play " Abusive Wife" to show them traditional Zhejiang's culture.

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with Zhejiang Daily

Youth Ensemble of Atlanta

9 Gammon Avenue | Atlanta, Georgia 30315

P: 404.756.2184