Aaron Huynh has taken on multiple roles, ranging from drama to comedy, from ancient figures facing complex dilemmas to comedic villains, but through a unique medium: Chinese classical dance. The art form’s expressive range of movements can convey a seemingly limitless array of emotions.
A principal dancer with Shen Yun Performing Arts, the world’s premier Chinese classical dance and music company, Mr. Huynh has been blessed with natural flexibility and athleticism. At the Ninth NTD International Classical Chinese Dance Competition in 2021, he took home a silver award in the adult male division, and at the eighth annual competition, he won a bronze award.
Born and raised in Australia, Mr. Huynh, who has been training in classical Chinese dance for 10 years, said he had little knowledge of Chinese culture, despite his parents’ Chinese ethnic heritage. Growing up, he spoke English. For this reason, being part of New York-based Shen Yun Performing Arts has been a gift. The dance and music company offers audiences insight into China’s millennia-rich culture, before communism took over. Some of the stories depicted are drawn from Chinese history, highlighting values that were transmitted from one generation to the next.
Mr. Huynh said he was quite bashful when he first started out. At some point, he was able to shed his self-consciousness, and along with much hard work and practice, as well as the guidance of his teachers, that allowed him to make a breakthrough with his acting skills.
His high jumps impress with their physicality, but Mr. Huynh also works hard on developing the more nuanced movements and expressions of his characters.
To portray Wang Yun, an older senior minister during China’s Three Kingdoms era, Mr. Huynh learned to slow his movements and make them more deliberate. The posture too reflected his character’s years, with shoulders caving in slightly. Next, he sought to understand his character’s situation and mindset. As the country suffered in the clutches of a tyrant, the minister, without any manpower to resort to, made the difficult choice to ask his daughter to embark on a risky task that could save the country.
“I feel like he was pushed to the point where he had no other options,” Mr. Hyunh said. After countless rehearsals, he said, something clicked—bringing together dance moves, posture, and facial expressions into a harmonious whole.
In another piece, he plays a father in present-day China whose wife and daughter are kidnapped by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) for their faith. They practice Falun Dafa, a spiritual discipline based on the principles of truthfulness, compassion, and tolerance; it has been persecuted in China for nearly 25 years. The father goes to a police station to ask where his daughter is, and is handed a handkerchief that belongs to her. It is all that is left of her. He finds out that she has been killed for her organs.
“There’s been many times where I’ve actually teared up on stage during the piece, because of the intense emotions that I’m going through, while I’m trying to portray this character, because these events actually happen in China,” he said.
“It’s definitely heartbreaking. But then through that experience, I’m able to have a deeper understanding of what it’s like when your life is at stake, when everything you believe is at stake, and you still choose to believe in your faith under all those circumstances.”
Though Mr. Huynh has taken on roles in dramatic pieces, he also plays comedic roles, including a villain whose shenanigans involving a magical object land him in unexpected, comical trouble with his wife. In another, he portrays a monk who dresses up as a girl to rescue a young woman kidnapped by bandits.
He enjoys playing these roles tremendously, especially when they elicit laughter from the audience. “It really gives me an extra boost,” he said.
Mr. Huynh said that once during a break, he had the chance to watch the audience reactions during the show.
“That was always one of my dreams, like to sit in the audience to see how the audience will react,” he said.
He was gratified to see the audience members so engaged, their laughter and their tears. Whether they’re experiencing traditional Chinese culture through historical characters or humorous tales from literature, or learning how the CCP is hurting people in China today, the audience really connects with the performance.
“All this hard work—no matter how tiring everything is—I really feel like what we’re doing is worth it,” Mr. Huynh said.
