Rona Rui/The Epoch TimesCANBERRA—Shen Yun Performing Arts International Company opened its 2011 season in Australia’s capital with a full house at the Australian Capital Territory’s (ACT), Canberra Theatre, March 8.
Mr. Smyth has long had an interest in Chinese culture and after seeing Shen Yun he said: “It is always nice to see the way different ethnicities and different stories are told. It is a pleasure to be here.”
Mr. Smyth welcomed the New York based company saying people needed to know more about the richness and extent of Chinese culture.
“So much has come out of China and I don’t think particularly Australians understand the depth and diversity of Chinese culture so it is a pleasure to learn about it.”
Learning about other cultures was the beginning of really understanding a country he said, so Shen Yun had an important role to play.
“I think what Shen Yun teaches you is that there is a diversity of cultures in China and one should always try to learn something about that so I think it’s very important that we get a real perception about what goes on in places like China,“ Mr. Smyth said adding, ”to start with the culture is a very important thing.”
Shen Yun had been “quite spectacular,” he said, listing the things that had impressed him including “the variety of colour, the quality of the dance, the interesting stories they tell.”
“I think the technology is very smart,” he added, “To see it blended in, in such a good way, I think it’s very effective.”
Mr. Smyth was particularly impressed with the last scene in the first half, a memorable scene depicting the young herders on the Mongolian grasslands.
“I particularly like the story of Genghis Khan and the large armies he commanded so the story of the Steppes, the horsemanship and the outer reaches of China, I found it lovely, and all the guys in green pretending to be horses. I find that particular story very interesting.”
Shen Yun, Mr. Smyth said, raises questions about the quest for peace saying, ”the pursuit of peace is very important but I think it’s important to every culture in that regard.”
Shen Yun Performing Arts International Company will perform one more show tomorrow evening in Canberra before continuing its 2011 World Tour to Taiwan. For more information, visit ShenYunPerformingArts.org
Mr. Smyth has long had an interest in Chinese culture and after seeing Shen Yun he said: “It is always nice to see the way different ethnicities and different stories are told. It is a pleasure to be here.”
Mr. Smyth welcomed the New York based company saying people needed to know more about the richness and extent of Chinese culture.
“So much has come out of China and I don’t think particularly Australians understand the depth and diversity of Chinese culture so it is a pleasure to learn about it.”
Learning about other cultures was the beginning of really understanding a country he said, so Shen Yun had an important role to play.
“I think what Shen Yun teaches you is that there is a diversity of cultures in China and one should always try to learn something about that so I think it’s very important that we get a real perception about what goes on in places like China,“ Mr. Smyth said adding, ”to start with the culture is a very important thing.”
Shen Yun had been “quite spectacular,” he said, listing the things that had impressed him including “the variety of colour, the quality of the dance, the interesting stories they tell.”
“I think the technology is very smart,” he added, “To see it blended in, in such a good way, I think it’s very effective.”
Mr. Smyth was particularly impressed with the last scene in the first half, a memorable scene depicting the young herders on the Mongolian grasslands.
“I particularly like the story of Genghis Khan and the large armies he commanded so the story of the Steppes, the horsemanship and the outer reaches of China, I found it lovely, and all the guys in green pretending to be horses. I find that particular story very interesting.”
Shen Yun, Mr. Smyth said, raises questions about the quest for peace saying, ”the pursuit of peace is very important but I think it’s important to every culture in that regard.”
Shen Yun Performing Arts International Company will perform one more show tomorrow evening in Canberra before continuing its 2011 World Tour to Taiwan. For more information, visit ShenYunPerformingArts.org
