BEAVER CREEK, Colo.—“It’s just perfect in every way,” said artist Carol Sarchet, after she was finally able to see Shen Yun Performing Arts at the Vilar Performing Arts Center in Colorado.
Ms. Sarchet and her friend, Ms. Andrea Tapley, had planned to see Shen Yun the first time it performed in Colorado this year, but they were unable to make the performance in Boulder due to a snow storm.
“It’s just classically beautiful, indescribable, and it’s wonderful,” Ms. Sarchet said.
Ms. Sarchet, who will be displaying her own installation of textiles and narratives at a museum in Colorado in the fall, connected with the artistry and stories presented by the New York-based Shen Yun.
“It’s visually exciting, and it’s all-sensual,” Ms. Sarchet said. “And being a textile person, I love all of the color and fabric—it’s probably all silk they are using.”
‘Shen Yun’s costume artists collect countless designs of traditional attire, from emperors to imperial guards, gods and deities to the common man.”
“There are so many levels to this performance that you could study,” Ms. Sarchet added. “There is so much about the Chinese culture involved with it—it’s just like you’re only seeing a little bit of that culture.”
Through classical Chinese dance, Shen Yun relays stories that range from ancient legends to present-day events taking place in China today. Ms. Sarchet said she was particularly struck by the piece An Unexpected Encounter, as she has a friend who was familiar with a similar situation.
“I had a friend in town when that happened in Tiananmen Square, an American friend, so I know a little about it,” Ms. Sarchet said. The particular piece addresses the persecution of traditional Chinese values and beliefs under the communist regime in China today.
“I’ve read about Falun Gong, and I don’t quite understand why they are being persecuted,” Ms. Sarchet said. The spiritual practice, which teaches Truthfulness, Compassion, and Forbearance, was outlawed in China in 1999 and has since faced severe persecution.
“I just want to go onto the Internet and find out more about it,” Ms. Sarchet added.
Ms. Tapley agreed, and was touched by Shen Yun’s mission to revive traditional Chinese culture. “You can’t keep that repressed forever,” Ms. Tapley said. “Good will overcome evil, as they say.”
“I can’t imagine anyone—anyone—not enjoying this show,” she concluded.
Reporting by Jim Fogarty and Catherine Yang
New York-based Shen Yun Performing Arts has three touring companies that perform simultaneously around the world. For more information, visit ShenYunPerformingArts.org.
