BUENOS AIRES, Argentina—Member of Parliament Nélida Belouse and her daughter Ana Sol were thrilled to see the New York-based Shen Yun Performing Arts show on its 2009 World Tour.
The Auditoria Belgrano in Buenos Aires was the first theater in Argentina to offer its citizens a true Chinese traditional cultural show, with stories from the past handed down through folklore, to scenes from present-day China.
Ms. Belouse was amazed by everything, the dazzling colors of the costumes, the music played by an orchestra of both Chinese and Western instruments, and the talented singers and dancers.
She said it was “extremely interesting and attractive. Really, to get to know the Chinese history through dance is something new. I don’t know very much about Chinese culture. I find all the colors very attractive and the preparation of the dances is truly marvelous.”
Even when an entire show is fascinating, there are often parts that stay in ones’ mind a little longer, that especially please the eyes and the ears.
Two such scenes, for Ms. Belouse, were the Mongolian Chopsticks, an ethnic dance, and the Dragon Springs Drummers, with dancers in colorful costumes. In the first, men welcome guests with a joyful, vigorous dance, using bundles of chopsticks almost as percussion instruments. Dragon Springs Drummers is also a playful dance, in which the male dancers seem to urge each other to greater and greater displays of athleticism.
“There were two that I liked the most, the male dance with the chopsticks and the drums. You can really see a lot of energy there, a lot of skill, and in addition there is a very detailed preparation in terms of the movements and coordination, really marvelous,” said Belouse.
The soloists sang in Chinese. In order to bring the full meaning of the songs to the audience, both the Chinese characters and the Spanish translation were displayed on the innovative projected backdrop.
Ms. Belouse responded to the music, and was strongly impressed by the dance. “I feel, from my perspective and my personal difficulties, it is something that really draws my attention because it is something very difficult.”
She said the singers “have beautiful voices,” noting “the technique of their interpretation and the clarity of their voice ... the movements are really what attracted me the most as well as the colorfulness of their costumes.”
Audiences worldwide have said they were touched by the sincerity of the performers.
“Well, it moved me, but more than that, they [the performers] transmitted tranquility. It is not something aggressive, as much as the movements and sounds are important. It is not a show that changes you, but on the contrary, at least in my case, it calmed me a lot. What it transmits is interesting. Up to now it is very interesting and attractive,” said the legislator.
Ms. Sol, daughter of Ms. Belouse, wanted to let us know what she felt about the performance.
“It is really a truly great idea to transmit the history of China by way of color and dances. Aside from the skill, one can see that because of their culture, it seems like all that skill and that love for their culture is expressed through the body and with the colors.”
The performance taught something not often felt when leaving a show, “The theme of the family,” said Ms. Sol. “Over there the family [is of great importance], that is something pretty well known, but I liked to see it. The program about the family, that is something deeply ingrained, of respect.”
“I liked it. The truth is I liked it because it may be more prominent in that culture but it is something you don’t see very much. That respect, to “be a good person,” those things, those are good.”
Shen Yun will be performing in Buenos Aires until July 5. Santiago, Chile, will host three shows from July 10 to 12. The show will then return to Argentina on July 16, this time in Cordoba, performing three shows until July 18.
Please see ShenYunPerformingArts.org for more information.
