LAS VEGAS—Mr. Ramiro Gardea and his wife, Rose, were at Reynolds Hall at the Smith Center for Performing Arts for Shen Yun Performing Arts’ opening night. Shen Yun opened to a full house.

After spending 24 years in the United States Air Force, Mr. Gardea now holds the position of State Deputy for the Nevada Chapter of the Knights of Columbus.

This was the first time Mr. and Mrs. Gardea had seen a Shen Yun performance. “It’s very nice, the first time we’ve seen something like this. We’re enjoying it very much.”

One musical piece in particular intrigued Mrs. Gardea: “I could hear in the background, and I never knew what it was until I actually saw them playing it.”

The musical segment, performed by Xiaochun Qi, featured a unique Chinese instrument, the erhu. The Shen Yun website helps explain this ancient instrument, “The erhu is one of the most important Chinese instruments, with a history of over 4,000 years. Though it only has two strings, it can convey a wide range of emotions.”

“Very, very nice,” she added. “Especially to watch the instrument being played.”

The choreography impressed Mr. Gardea. “The feeling is very nice, it’s relaxing, and it’s nice to see all the choreography that they do and how they do it.”

“Classical Chinese dance has a long history of thousands of years, highlights Shen Yun’s website, soaking up profound wisdom from every era and dynasty, it has become a complete system of dance embodying traditional aesthetic with its unique dance movements, rhythms and inner meaning,” says the Shen Yun website.

“They’re all very in unison, you can tell they had a lot of practice going into this,” said Mr. Gardea.

Mr. Gardea said he found the evenings’ performance, “soothing, relaxing, tranquil.”

“I’m definitely going to tell all our people, our friends, family,” he said. “Just come and see it if they have a chance!”

Reporting by Jana Li and Cheryl Casati

New York-based Shen Yun Performing Arts has four touring companies that perform simultaneously around the world. For more information, visit Shen Yun Performing Arts.

The Epoch Times considers Shen Yun Performing Arts the significant cultural event of our time. We have proudly covered audience reactions since Shen Yun’s inception in 2006.