TORONTO—For Marianne Godwin, CEO of Marilyn Monroe Cafe, and Steve Misener, a veteran Bay Street executive, Shen Yun was money well spent.
“It’s wonderful—the colours, amazing acrobatics, the physical talent. I love the flipping and the high-jumping. It’s very, very good,” said Mr. Misener.
“I would see it again.”
Ms. Godwin agreed.
“I just love the colours, love the excitement of it. And the music is beautiful,” she said.
“And the singing is top-notch,” added Mr. Misener.
Ms. Godwin took it a step further and said everything about the show was top-notch.
Mr. Misener, who won the Globe and Mail Professional Stock Picker’s contest in 2000, was vice president for a number of financial firms, including Sentry Select Capital Corp. and CI Mutual Funds before striking out on his own as an investment consultant.
Ms. Godwin launched the Marilyn Monroe Café last year, a place the legendary actress would be comfortable, rather than a shrine to her memory. Ms. Godwin plans to franchise the upscale branded coffee house in Canada, the U.S., and around the world.
Shen Yun was founded on a mission to revive 5,000 years of divinely inspired Chinese culture. Shen Yun stages performances of mainly classical Chinese dance, as well as ethnic and folk dances from China’s diverse ethnicities and regions.
Many of the story-based dances Shen Yun performs draw upon China’s rich history—sometimes documented in vivid detail—as well as myths, legends and tales from beloved Chinese classics, like Journey to the West.
“Learning about the culture and the history is fascinating,” said Ms. Godwin.
“To me it’s just amazing how the culture transcends through the generations and how it’s timeless. Very beautiful,” she said.
