SHEN YUN PERFORMING ARTS REVIEWS

Well-Known British Dancer and Personality Awed by Shen Yun Dancers

SHARE
Well-Known British Dancer and Personality Awed by Shen Yun Dancers
Former dancer with the Royal Ballet, Wayne Sleep attended Shen Yun Performing Arts at Eventim Apollo in London on Feb. 2, 2024. Mary Mann/The Epoch Times

LONDON, U.K.—Shen Yun performed at the Eventim Apollo on Feb. 2 to an appreciative house. In the audience was British dancer, director, choreographer, and actor, Wayne Sleep.

Once a dancer with the Royal Ballet, Mr. Sleep is well acquainted with classic ballet and said, “I know a lot of [dance] steps, but I didn’t realize they traditionally came from China.

“A lot of the steps of what we do, you know, the turning jumps and the extensions up here—I thought that was traditionally from Russian ballet. But we learned tonight that those jumps and turns originated in China hundreds of years ago, so that was very new,” he said.

“It was faultless. Where do they get all those people? All with such expressive movement, and when you just finish a line, like we do ... but when [they] finish a line, it almost ripples into the next movement, so it’s never still.”

Mr. Sleep talked about the technically difficult moves with ballet language. “And to be able to do that with 20, 30 people on stage, that they all breathe into the next step, and ‘renversé,’ which is like leaning your head behind and going away—it’s like pulling yourself one way and leaving it. I wish they'd do more of that in the Royal Ballet. It was unique, and it’s something I didn’t expect at all.”

Stories of Simplicity and Joy

Mr. Sleep spoke of the simplicity and purity of the stories told through Shen Yun’s dances. “I love the innocence of it like a child because I would imagine that China’s been sort of maintained and a lot of people didn’t get outside, so it’s protected the innocence,” he said.
Through classical Chinese dance and music, Shen Yun is sharing with the world the beauty of China’s authentic 5,000 years of history. Since its founding in 2006, the company has received worldwide accolades for its mission to revive traditional Chinese culture.
Former dancer with the Royal Ballet, Wayne Sleep attended Shen Yun Performing Arts with a friend at Eventim Apollo in London on Feb. 2, 2024.(Mary Mann/The Epoch Times)
Former dancer with the Royal Ballet, Wayne Sleep attended Shen Yun Performing Arts with a friend at Eventim Apollo in London on Feb. 2, 2024.Mary Mann/The Epoch Times

The stories intrigued the renowned performer. “Well, I learned something tonight from traditional Chinese stories, and the innocence of going to heaven at the end. We are so cynical in the West. ... But to see it maintained and be brought around the world, it’s looking back hundreds of years ago.”

Mr. Sleep realized the importance of keeping the traditions of a culture alive to train the next generation. “Luckily, [Shen Yun] is in the West now. All these teachers came from traditional Chinese dance schools that went back hundreds of years ago. So thank you.”

When the curtains opened, Mr. Sleep experienced an array of sensations. “Oh, Technicolor. It was like watching a movie. It’s like I’ve seen color for the first time because it’s so different than our color,” he said.

“It’s stunningly simple with the pinks and the yellows, and it’s just one color, and the silks, and everything. It’s different than what we have. I love Chinese watercolors ... I think we’ve gone to heaven as well.”

With a lifetime of experience on stage as a performer, Mr. Sleep found Shen Yun wonderfully unique. “It’s something one doesn’t normally see. I think it’s gone beyond technicolor and, of course, the cleverness of it.

A Unique Backdrop

He liked how the dancers used the 3D backdrop as part of the performance. “We know what they do, and the cleverness of the set, going down onto the ground, and coming up as if you’re real. I’ve never seen that before. So it was wonderful, and it was so accurate.”

The dances made the stories interesting and inventive. “I loved the characters better. I mean I loved the dancing. A lot of ballet companies might do something similar, but I loved the story. Everybody was allowed to be individual, even though they had to be absolutely together, and you don’t get that often,” Mr. Sleep said.

Maintaining one’s culture in a busy modern world can be a challenge, he said. “I think it’s very important to keep the culture you were born in, and that has been passed on to you over centuries and centuries.”

He spoke for maintaining Chinese culture as British culture is kept and there are similarities across different cultures. “We still have traditional folk dancing with the maypole and clog dancing, which is like tap dancing in this country. And you should never forget your roots, and hornpipes. I saw them coming forward like that.

“But it’s amazing how different cultures, although they’ve never seen other people’s cultures from the past, can be very similar. They think of the steps at the same time.”

He sent many kudos to the dancers. “Congratulations everybody. This audience should have been cheering from the start. [The theater] was packed and nobody left. I think the audience grew into it. They were there, and we went to meet them. I didn’t know what to expect. It’s simple but joyous. It brings you joy.”

With shows scheduled in over 200 cities and across five continents, the 2024 touring season is shaping up to be the artists’ busiest yet.
Reporting by Mary Mann and Yvonne Marcotte.
The Epoch Times is a proud sponsor of Shen Yun Performing Arts. We have covered audience reactions since Shen Yun’s inception in 2006.
Related Topics
shen yun
SHARE