Enough goodwill, how about some dance?

After a visit from the 1994 Chinese Youth Goodwill Mission last night at the Maine Center for the Arts, there has been perhaps enough of this brand of “goodwill” to last well into the next Chinese New Year. Although the show began with intriguing images of Chinese culture such as lanterns, ornaments, streamers and traditional dance, it quickly switched to an exuberant concoction of Osmond Brothers, kung fu, break dancing and Up With People.

That’s not to say the performances by these 17 college students wasn’t often impressive. Their movements, particularly the synchronized ones, were sharp and skillful. The teamwork of these dancers, most of whom are amateur performers, was the real highlight of this presentation. When 10 of the dancers grabbed hold of the sticks supporting a Chinese dragon, they created a strong sense of vertigo, as well as a delightful visual tableau. The mix of ballet and martial arts, the juggling, and the many colorful swaths of cloth used to create rippling effects were fascinating to watch. The children who made up much of the audience were especially pleased with these stage tricks.

But a little bit of this type of goodwill goes a long way. During the second half of the program, the performance turned toward modern dance styles with endlessly upbeat music, glittering costumes and considerably less interesting choreography. In “Till the End of Time,” the dancers began with modern ballet and moved into a cartoonish disco style that was a disappointing end to what appeared to be a lyrical work.

“Lively Youth” set out to depict campus life in Taipei with a Chinese version of the Charleston. This segued into a cleaned-up rendition of street dance with rap music, and ended with a fashion show-style processional in which all the sequined dancers strutted formally across stage and struck stances. The whole piece had more in common with the type of entertainment on the Miss America Pageant than with gaining a deeper understanding of Chinese culture, which is supposedly the mission of this group.

Not that being cheerful is a bad thing, but this show simply came on too strong with its smiles and glee. It overly sweetened nearly every move and although the color, talent and rigor could be interesting to watch, it was all a bit too Walt Disney.