TORONTO—Shen Yun Performing Arts opened a window to classical Chinese dance and the diversity of an ancient culture, said Toronto City Councillor Ana Bailão.
“It’s great, got great music, great performances, great energy. Inspirational. It really teaches a little bit about the Chines culture, the varied areas of China,” she said during the intermission of Saturday night’s performance at Sony Centre for the Performing Arts.
“I am learning a lot and I strongly recommend it.”
She said she had a better understanding of classical Chinese dance, culture, and how important those traditions are to the Chinese people. She also had a clearer picture of the differences between China’s various ethnicities in different regions of the country.
“That was very interesting.”
Ana Bailão was elected city councillor for Ward 18 in the last election. Born in Portugal, she has an appreciation for cultural diversity and in 2005 became the President of the Federation of Portuguese Canadian Business and Professionals, advocating on issues like immigration and education.
In 2007, she became President of the Working Women Community Centre, and before her election she served as a board member of the Justice of the Peace Appointment Advisory Committee, the Luso Canadian Charitable Society, and the environmental organization GreenHere.
She also worked as Vice President of Marketing at GlobeStar Systems.
She said she was particularly fond of Shen Yun’s unique music which is presented live by a Western philharmonic orchestra that has Chinese instruments leading the melodies.
“The orchestra is fantastic. I am really enjoying the music. It’s very relaxing but at the same time very classic ... beautiful.”
“It’s great that in Canada we are fortunate enough to have the freedom to watch these shows and to share with the people that have other cultures, other ideas. It feels great.”
She said Shen Yun’s brightly coloured costumes and backgrounds were also very interesting, and demonstrated again the differences between various dances and regions of China.
She paid special attention to Lotus Leaves, in which the dancers portray lotus maidens dancing upon the water with full-circle fans swaying like lily pads in the summer time.
“I thought it was really cute,” she said.
Shen Yun’s dancers impressed her with their precise choreography, an intricate presentation of classical Chinese dance that can include dozens of dancers on stage at a time.
“They are right on the spot. Very coordinated, so I really appreciate that,” she said.
“Having so many people so well-coordinated is very impressive.”
Shen Yun, which is based in New York, tours the world on a mission to revive traditional Chinese culture, a heritage 5,000 years in the making that has been all but destroyed under the current communist regime, particularly during the decade-long Cultural Revolution.
The performing arts company explains on its website that it aims to revive the essence of traditional Chinese culture, a tradition rooted in values such as compassion, propriety, justice, filial piety, and reverence for the divine.
“Today, on the surface, the Chinese Communist Party claims to be reviving traditional Chinese culture. But no matter how its efforts are framed, they are ineffectual. For the Chinese Communist Party removes the cultural essence of respect for the divine, thereby extracting the heart and soul of traditional Chinese culture.
“Shen Yun seeks to revive these virtues the world over,” Shen Yun’s website says.
“It’s sad that people in China can’t appreciate this show. I think it'd be important for people in China to be able to appreciate it. That’s my first thought,” said Ms. Bailão after the performance.
She also noted that China’s rich history and culture are not well-known among people in general.
Shen Yun Performing Arts has three equally large companies touring the world. International Company is in Toronto for one more show Sunday before continuing on to Mississauga’s Living Arts Centre for five shows.
For more information, visit ShenYunPerformingArts.org.
