"He's incredible," Johnson said. "I've heard others play before. It takes 20 to 30 years to learn to play the instrument."
They grew up in the 1960s listening to the recordings of Ravi Shankar on the sitar, Ortega said.
"I really identify with it," she said. "It's really tranquil and good for the mind and body and spirit."
June Seamans, of Minnesota, was here visiting her cousin Phyllis Holtzman, an Alex usher. She tries to make a performance whenever she comes for a vacation, she said.
"I came to this show because it was so different from my other times here," Seamans said.
There were a lot of elements of Cirque du Soleil, said Bill Bryan, of Glendale.
"I was overcome," he said, adding that his favorite was the aerialist acrobatics of Sasha Fedortchev and Buffy Ninette on the double red ropes. He was impressed with the production, he said.
"Some belly dance shows have a limited vocabulary, but this group graduated from the university," he said.
Karineh Karabidian, of Glendale, thought the show was better than one she'd seen in Las Vegas.
"This was worth much more money than what I paid to see the show in Vegas," she said. "All the acts were different. It was a mixture of East and West cultures together."
John McClurg, of Burbank, was also impressed with the show.
"It was a lot of hard work and was an amazing show," he said.
Professional belly dancer Carla Russing, of Glendale, said she thoroughly enjoyed the performances. She will perform Sept. 5 at Gitana in Burbank.
"I loved the Indian dancing, belly dancing and especially the people twirling on the red veils," she said.
