Rachel Abrams

And what was that like?

It's like going to Broadway.

It's like going to Broadway.

So that is not at all what I was expecting. I mean, I expected that you were going to tell me that it was a show with dancing and colorful costumes and being transported to faraway places. But I did not expect that there would be this whole underlying religious and political message.

So that is not at all what I was expecting. I mean, I expected that you were going to tell me that it was a show with dancing and colorful costumes and being transported to faraway places. But I did not expect that there would be this whole underlying religious and political message.

Yeah. So tell me about this man and this religious movement.

Yeah. So tell me about this man and this religious movement.

Okay, so far, all of this sounds pretty on par with what you would expect a lot of religions to be.

Okay, so far, all of this sounds pretty on par with what you would expect a lot of religions to be.

So very quickly, it sounds like it becomes a national movement.

So very quickly, it sounds like it becomes a national movement.

This is starting to explain the scenes in the play that you described of the man who's practicing Falun Gong being beaten. This is starting to make sense now. Exactly. You mentioned Li earlier, the founder of Falun Gong. So where is he in the middle of all this?

This is starting to explain the scenes in the play that you described of the man who's practicing Falun Gong being beaten. This is starting to make sense now. Exactly. You mentioned Li earlier, the founder of Falun Gong. So where is he in the middle of all this?

Got it. So everything you just said really helps to explain the show and the framing around, as you described it, good versus evil and Falun Gong versus the Chinese Communist Party. But given that this show is essentially propaganda, it does sort of surprise me that it's gotten so ubiquitous that it has billboards literally all over the world. So how successful could the show actually be?

Got it. So everything you just said really helps to explain the show and the framing around, as you described it, good versus evil and Falun Gong versus the Chinese Communist Party. But given that this show is essentially propaganda, it does sort of surprise me that it's gotten so ubiquitous that it has billboards literally all over the world. So how successful could the show actually be?

So, Nicole, your investigation pulls back the curtain on the inner workings of this show. And what you found is a system that's far more complex and sounds like it exploits people in a way that might not be apparent at first blush. So walk us through how all of this works.

So, Nicole, your investigation pulls back the curtain on the inner workings of this show. And what you found is a system that's far more complex and sounds like it exploits people in a way that might not be apparent at first blush. So walk us through how all of this works.

So let's start with the first piece that you outlined, the people who are actually performing in these shows. How do they fit in?

So let's start with the first piece that you outlined, the people who are actually performing in these shows. How do they fit in?

Oh, wow. So it sounds like he's basically made himself into like a godlike figure.