TAICHUNG, Taiwan—Mr. Cheng Ying Hsieh, the two-time first runner-up winner in the Metalwork Category of the National Craft Award, saw Shen Yun Performing Arts Touring Company in Taichung City on the evening of March 9.
He was enthralled. “Shen Yun show is different from any other performances in the past,” he said. “It is really magnificent.”
Shen Yun Performing Arts produces an entirely new program and tours more than 100 cities each year. Seeing Shen Yun for the second year in a row, Mr. Cheng said he still vividly remembers what he saw last year, and was pleased to attend the all-new artistic feast this year.
“Rarely did we see this kind of program in Taiwan,” he said. “The performance is very different from what we saw in the past. The show is very wonderful every year, and every program has its characteristics. Among the programs this year, there are stories about Journey to the West (Sand Monk Is Blessed), Mongolian dance (Mongolian Bowl Dance) ,and Bai ethnic dance (A Legacy of Grace), etc. All of these programs are full of respective characteristics.”
Shen Yun is formed with a core of classical Chinese dance, an ancient art form that has drawn upon the many dynasties and eras in China’s 5,000 year history.
“Classical Chinese dance is a culture left to us by the ancients who came before us, its beauty should be riches shared by all of humanity, its purity should not be contaminated,” states the company’s website. “Shen Yun Performing Arts’ dance style is built upon classical Chinese dance as a foundation, while also maintaining a number of ethnic and folk dances. This combination embodies Chinese people’s estheticism and ethnic character.”
Accentuating the dancers—who are adorned with handcrafted regalia—are digital backdrops and an orchestra that combines both classical Western and Chinese instruments.
Mr. Cheng said he particularly enjoyed the backdrops for the program Sand Monk is Blessed. The piece is one of many in which the backdrop becomes interactive, with dancers seamlessly moving into it from the stage to become digital characters in a perfect illusion.
“Special and very magnificent,” said Mr. Cheng. “The scenes that the monk flew to the stage from the backdrops are amazingly vivid and lifelike. I’ve never seen this kind of performance.”
Mr. Cheng said the way the stories and backdrops are synchronized so well is “like a miracle.”
Standing by his side, Mrs. Cheng echoed: “Shen Yun’s costumes are graceful and exquisite, and all of performers’ figure and stature are almost the same. It is really remarkable.”
Read original Chinese article.
Reporting by Reporters in Taichung and Bill Xu.
New York-based Shen Yun Performing Arts has three touring companies that perform simultaneously around the world. For more information, visit ShenYunPerformingArts.org
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