Shen Yun Is ‘Resonant With Today, With What’s Going on in the World,’ Says VP
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Kaitlyn and Gary Ash enjoyed Shen Yun Performing Arts at the Winspear Opera House, in Dallas, on the evening of Feb. 25, 2023. Sally Sun/The Epoch Times
DALLAS—After successful performances in Dallas in January, Shen Yun Performing Arts returned for a weekend of performances at the end of February, adding one last-minute show because of the high demand.
On the evening of Feb. 25, the third consecutive sold-out show, several audience members expressed their support and gratitude for Shen Yun’s mission. They spoke of what China lost to communism and the hope Shen Yun gave them in recovering a once nearly-lost traditional culture that felt universal to these theatergoers.
“I think it’s resonant with today, with what’s going on in the world,” said Gary Ash, vice president of sales, who saw the performance with his wife, Kaitlyn. The couple felt the production was beautiful and elegant and raised awareness for something little known around the world.
“I think they’re doing a great job on making impact,” said Mrs. Ash, who had read about Chinese culture but never had the opportunity to experience the authentic, traditional culture.
New York-based Shen Yun is the world’s premier classical Chinese dance company and has a mission to revive 5,000 years of Chinese civilization, showing audiences what it terms “China before communism.”
“They have to work very hard,” Mr. Ash commented because he felt to revive traditional culture would be a “long road, tough journey.” It was a journey the couple happily supported.
Wayne Nugent and his daughter enjoyed Shen Yun Performing Arts at the Winspear Opera House, in Dallas, on the evening of Feb. 25, 2023. Yawen Hung/The Epoch Times
Wayne Nugent, entrepreneur and businessman, brought his daughter to experience Shen Yun and better understand Chinese culture.
“It’s good for my daughter to see that because I think she’s gonna grow up in a world where China is powerful one way or the other,” Mr. Nugent said. “She’s living at a time where so much history is being made, and so much of it gets expressed through art and through music and dance.”
With Lao Tzu or Confucius or Buddhism, and then all the differences, whether it be Mongolia or Tibet, there’s just so much history there, rich history. And so much of it is spiritual,“ he said. ”And I was happy that that was in there, that it’s not just great music and great dance, but it does tell a bigger story that transcends politics. Above all politics is God.”
Mr. Nugent said Shen Yun’s revival of traditional culture through art was “extremely important.”
“I think that’s where it ultimately comes back to and calls out to the better aspects of all of us humans around the world that have a sense of God within,” he said. Though people around the world have different cultures, “at our essence, we’re all the same.”
He was deeply moved by the reminder that humankind came from heaven once, “and maybe we forget where we came from, and maybe we'll forget why we’re here,” but Shen Yun gave a reminder that was “presented very artfully, very subtly, but it’s there, and so you can tell that who’s behind the project.”
“It’s soulful and brings that deep meaning that maybe makes people curious,” he said. “I think that makes us all appreciate one another.”
“Shen Yun” means “the beauty of divine beings dancing,” which Mr. Nugent found fitting.
“I like the message. I like the name. I like the expressing through art, song, and dance music. The expression of freedom and truth, compassion, forbearance,” he said.
Luis and Delgado Sobrado, who both work in insurance, said they missed Shen Yun when it was in Florida, so they seized the chance to do so when it was in town in Dallas.
“It’s an absolute masterpiece,” Mrs. Sobrado said.
Mr. Sobrado said he had read about how Shen Yun is based in New York because in China the artists would not have had the freedom to show traditional culture. Coming from Cuba, which lost much to communism, he only had happiness and support for what Shen Yun was doing around the world, “to bring everything little by little the way it was before.”
“I think it’s a noble cause, really, and just to share it with the rest of the world—is phenomenal,” he said.
“Keep up the good job and spread the word throughout the world. It says a marvelous, marvelous culture.”
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