Bruce Springsteen at Staples Center. Esa-Pekka Salonen at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion.
And Miao Miao Chen at the Golden Dragon.
At least once a month, acrobat Chen, 20, entertains diners at the Chinatown eatery as she rolls on the floor while balancing lighted candelabra on all four limbs…and her head. She is joined by dancers, magicians and martial artists al the Golden Dragon’s “China Might” dinner show.
Musician Jack He wears a beatific face as he plays a haunting two-stringed Chinese instrument known as the erwu accompanied by a karaoke machine. He melts the room with “My Heart Will Go On.”
Acrobat Jason Jiang simultaneously kicks four bowls off his extended leg into a neat slack on top of his head while riding a unicycle.
Pedro Chan, part-owner of the restaurant, organizes and emcees the evenings. A magician who has performed at the Magic Castle, Chan likes to brag of his ability to find talent for the shows.
One recent show featured a special guest, 8-year-old Adrian Ramos of Anaheim, billed by Chan as “the world’s youngest magician.” The diminutive, tuxedoed and not-Chinese Ramos, with his “lovely assistant” (and third-grade classmate) Melissa Stanford, was polishing his act for a possible appearance on “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno.”
Chan also offers lunch and brunch versions of “China Night,” featuring magic shows.
“There may be better food elsewhere,” Chan says, “but you cannot find entertainment like this.”