We "walked" into one of the last shows playing during our day at Sanrio Puroland. It was called "Believe" and actually used the whole circular area around the Wisdom Tree (in Puro Village) as the stage. (See this previous post for a map.)
Apparently, this show was about "Love, Kindness and Friendship" - everything that Sanrio cultivates... I think there was some kind of story to it, but the production values and choreography got me impressed.
Since it was presented on a circular stage, it meant that the audience could be sitting anywhere around it and therefore wouldn't see what's happening on the far side of the tree.
No problem - a massive cast ensured that there were enough acrobats and dancers doing their thing at any point around the stage. Parts of the choreography involved all the ground-based performers to move around the tree as well, adding to the dynamism.
Laser-lighting accompanied aerial acrobatics by talented young performers and parts of the tree design were incorporated in the performance such as an elevating platform to indicate a growing plant (I think!).
The show finally ended with a parade of performers and "vehicles" that circled the tree before making an exit. See what you think with this clip below.
In February 2009, Mark and Linh moved from the UK to the Far East to spend 16 months living in Hong Kong and traveling around East Asia. This website documents their journey.