THOUSAND OAKS, Calif.—“The precision and movement of the dance was very nice, and the costumes were beautiful,” said Angelica Abrams of the Shen Yun Performing Arts spectacle at the Fred Kavli Theatre on Wednesday night, Jan. 23. Ms. Abrams is a ballet, tap and hip-hop dancer and attended Shen Yun with two fellow dancers.
Shen Yun is a New York-based performing arts company that celebrates traditional Chinese culture and the spiritual core within that 5,000-year legacy.
Ms. Abrams said she loved the performance. “It was so beautiful. Very, very beautiful … All the lines were very clean, the arms, the energy was really well done.”
Shen Yun specializes in classical Chinese dance, considered one of the most comprehensive and expressive dance systems in the world. Classical Chinese dance has its own set of basic skills in both physical expression and specific postures. “It also involves learning combinations of leaps, turns, flips, spins, and other aerial and tumbling techniques,” the website notes.
Shen Yun uses a massive digital backdrop that spans the length of the stage, which helps tell the mythic tales of deities and celestial beings of ancient China. Ms. Abrams was very impressed with the presentation of the legends: “From what I saw in the show it’s very interesting. I really like how they dropped down and then flew. That was really cool!”
Jocelyn Zelaya, who also does ballet, tap, hip hop, said, “It was perfect. Amazing … I like the precision because they were so together.”
She too was interested in the educational element of Shen Yun: “It really showed me how vast [their history is] and a lot of information and things I didn’t know. It took me into history.”
Elissa Brock, who does mostly ballet and modern dance, said, “This show is so amazing. I’ve never seen a show like this before.”
Ms. Brock truly enjoyed how the different aspects of Shen Yun danced together: “I really liked all the costuming, how they used the long sleeves, the pieces of cloth, and the sticks and everything to go with the music and bring length and life to the dances.”
She was equally intrigued by the continual changing flow of the performance: “It was really interesting how they kept the show moving and kept you interested in the show. Nothing was the same, everything kept bringing new and more new things. I thought it was really, really interesting.”
Ms. Brock said she wanted to learn more about Shen Yun when she returned home and recommended that “anyone who hasn’t seen the show really needs to come and see it!”
Reporting by NTD Television and Derek Padula.
New York-based Shen Yun Performing Arts has three touring companies that perform simultaneously around the world. Shen Yun’s Touring Company will visit Los Angeles Jan. 25 to Jan. 27. For more information, visit ShenYunPerformingArts.org
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