'SHAOLIN WARRIORS'.

Byline: SAMANTHA GONZAGA

>LA.COM 

How do you get inside the head of a fighting monk?

The "Shaolin Warriors" kung fu production offers something close to an answer with a glimpse into the daily lives of Henan Province's Buddhist order, whose hard-bodied contemplative monks have been popularized in cinema.

"Shaolin Warriors" has embarked on its fourth North American tour, stopping for two performances today at the Carpenter Performing Arts Center in Long Beach.

Beijing-based China Performing Arts Agency, the group behind the globe-trotting production, had its eyes set on less flash and more substance than is typically found in big-screen depictions.

"We, CPAA Productions, noticed that there was a market for the beautiful kung fu presentation, not simply the stunts of movies," the organization said in an e-mailed statement. "We also felt obliged to build a bridge for a better and deeper understanding of our rich culture and history."

The production's creative team uses the four seasons to depict the monks' daily lives as they train their bodies and refine their minds through meditation. As a thematic device, it also illustrates the cyclical pattern of experience, a tenet in Chinese Buddhism.

"This show is very well organized," said Changboa Feng, 23, a monk responding to questions fielded by an interpreter and e-mailed to LA.COM.

"Some demonstrations (are), of course, for better visual effects, but we have so many real stuff/highlights that stay true to the spirituality of Shaolin Kungfu, say, the meditation, the animal boxing, the hard qigong (a breathing exercise) for the acts of breaking iron bars and lying on the nail beds, etc."

Split into four acts corresponding to summer, spring, autumn and winter, the program uses each "season" to show the monks in meditation, at play and eating their meals, and in a series of boxing techniques and weapons testing.

Reviews of past performances were breathless in recounting the monks' feats of endurance and strength, at once beautiful and powerful.

"In my mind, passion is always the most important approach to the hearts of audiences," said Chuanxi Wang, 20, who has been with "Shaolin Warriors" for a year.

"The most challenging part so far is that some stages are small with limited space on both sides," said Pengfei Chen, 20, another monk. "Thus we need to be very careful to do some features, for example, somersaults. We also need to place our weapons properly inside stages to avoid any incidents when we exit the stage."

Several artistic considerations have gone into the set design to make it functional for performers as well as to infuse the stage with a Chinese "flavor," said production manager Yucheng Zhan.

Traditional music accompanies the performance, and drops depicting holy figures and scenic terrains serve as locations that give context to the monks' demonstrations, be it with meditation, a vegetable-chopping session in the kitchen or boxing in the mountains.

Golden Buddha and Goddess of Mercy drops, for example, are used for the monks' meditation scenes to "give people a kind of calmness and peace of mind," said stage manager Ronghu Zing, who supervises drops design and production.

"They also create a holy atmosphere," Zing said.

Samantha Gonzaga, [phone],

[e-mail]

SHAOLIN WARRIORS

>Where: Carpenter Performing Arts Center, 6200 Atherton St., Long Beach

>When: 2 and 8 p.m. today.

>Tickets: $38; $33 for seniors and students.

>Information: [phone], www.carpenterarts.org.

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(1 -- 2 -- color) Shaolin Warriors display their martial arts skills in a show that also captures the grace of their more tranquil moments.