SHEN YUN PERFORMING ARTS REVIEWS

Shen Yun Presents ‘A Universal Message of Hope, Faith, and Peace for All of the Human Race,’ Says Journalist

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Shen Yun Presents ‘A Universal Message of Hope, Faith, and Peace for All of the Human Race,’ Says Journalist
Shad Olson (L) enjoyed Shen Yun's evening performance at The Monument, in Rapid City, on April 15, 2023. Nancy Ma/The Epoch Times

RAPID CITY, S.D.—Independent journalist Shad Olson, who had written books and political commentaries, enjoyed Shen Yun’s evening performance at The Monument on April 15.

This was Mr. Olson’s third time seeing Shen Yun, and he thought the show “came at a particularly poignant moment in world events.”

“We’re at a crossroads—not just in China but here in the United States as well,” he said.

Based in New York, Shen Yun was established in 2006 by a group of leading Chinese artists who had fled the persecution of the communist party.
For 5,000 thousand years, Chinese people believed that their culture was a gift from the divine. However, after the communist party’s violent takeover, the nation’s civilization and moral beliefs were completely destroyed.
For their efforts in reviving traditional culture and speaking out about human rights issues in modern-day China, Shen Yun performers are continuously harassed and threatened by the Chinese communist regime.

Mr. Olson was touched by the story dance depicting the communist party’s persecution of Falun Gong—a peaceful meditation upholding the principles of truthfulness, compassion, and forbearance.

“The message of the suffering of Falun Gong and the tyranny of the Beijing regime over the nation are particularly striking at a moment when the United States is having itself infiltrated,” he expressed.

“In the Democratic Party, communist ideology is taking hold. Many of our younger generations believe that communism is the answer for world peace and for prosperity and equality.”

Young people today are “deliberately deprived of an education” on the truth and carnage of communism—not just in China, but North Korea, Vietnam, Cambodia, and the Soviet Union.
For Mr. Olson, Shen Yun’s message is aspirational for “the elevation of the human race in terms of their ability to transcend the very, very ugly and the struggles that we find ourselves [in] on earth.”
“One of the vignettes in Shen Yun’s performance showed people’s fixation with their phones and being overcome and addicted to digital devices. These factors in the world separate us from our true nature, our spiritual self. This leads to frustration, then to jealousy and violence,” Mr. Olson said.
Shen Yun presented “a universal message of hope, faith, and peace for all of the human race.” He believed returning to “the simplicity and the truth of that central message—is our only hope for humanity.”

Referring to the spirituality depicted in Shen Yun, Mr. Olson said we all need spiritual renewal and rebirth. That is the only way to transcend the “strife and chaos and anger and violence of this present realm.”

We need to “focus on the simplicity, joy, and goodness of what it means to be a human being,” he said.

“There is a spark of divinity in the soul of every human being that was placed here by our Creator. Only by hearing his voice again and returning to the humility, simplicity, and the gentleness of spirit— [can there be] hope for humanity.”

Reporting by Nancy Ma and Jennifer Tseng.
The Epoch Times is a proud sponsor of Shen Yun Performing Arts. We have covered audience reactions since Shen Yun’s inception in 2006.
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