NEW YORK—This season’s Shen Yun Performing Arts debut at the David H. Koch Theater at the Lincoln Center was the third time seasoned theatergoer Jeffrey Langberg saw the show.
“I think that if you really want to appreciate it, you need to see it more than once,” said Mr. Langberg, a financier in New York. He said that seeing it again, he was able to “understand the dancing more, understand the meaning more, and have an appreciation for the individual key dancers and choreographers.”
Shen Yun seeks to revive traditional Chinese culture through classical Chinese dance and performing arts. This dance is said to carry the essence of the 5,000-year-old culture of China, which was passed down from the imperial court and was part of ancient theater.
“It’s really historic, it’s educational, and it’s beautiful,” he said of Thursday night’s performance. “The waterfall scene was fabulous.”
“It’s not only the music that tells a story,” but the way the whole show comes together, he said. Masters of ceremony appear at the beginning of each piece to explain the dance or song in Chinese and English.
“I also get a great kick out of the interaction of the translators. I think they work very well together, and it seems like each time there is always something new, so you never can get bored,” Mr. Langberg said.
He also noted that some of the story dances carry a message about contemporary China. Several dances depict the Chinese regime’s ongoing, 11-year-long persecution of people who practice Falun Gong, a meditation practice banned in China.
He said that the message was “‘very good.” According to the program, one story portrays courage in the face of adversity and leaves a message of hope and inspiration.
Reporting by Evan Mantyk and Jack Phillips
Shen Yun Performing Arts New York Company will perform at Lincoln Center’s David H. Koch Theater in New York City, June 23–26. For more information, visit ShenYunPerformingArts.org
