SHEN YUN PERFORMING ARTS REVIEWS

Theatergoer Enjoys ‘How China Used to Be’ at Houston Shen Yun Performance

Dec 29, 2024

HOUSTON—Airline pilot Brad Wilder had wanted to see Shen Yun Performing Arts for several years, and he finally got his chance on Saturday. Mr. Wilder said the performance met all his expectations, and he enjoyed the beauty that was depicted throughout the performance.

Among the stand-out highlights was the beauty of ancient China and its rich traditions, Mr. Wilder said at the Jones Hall for the Performing Arts on Dec. 28.

Shen Yun brought to life on stage “how China used to be, how beautiful the country was before the communists took over, how they believed in the divine instead of evolution, and more family instead of communism,” the pilot said.

“It was wonderful. You learned a lot about the country before communism took over. So it’s fantastic. And the tradition, all the traditions. So it’s beautiful.”

Ancient Chinese culture is now on the brink of extinction under communist rule in China, New York-based Shen Yun said on its website, as the Chinese Communist Party sees traditional Chinese values as a “threat to its existence.”

By presenting “China before communism” to the audience worldwide, Shen Yun enables the world and Chinese people to envision what modern-day China could be like without communism.

“People think that China is very cold. But what it used to be, what we’re learning here, [they were] very compassionate people. Passionate and beautiful. [A] very beautiful culture,” Mr. Wilder said.

Mr. Wilder said he had seen advertisements about Shen Yun for years and knew that the world-class performing arts company was established in 2006. So being able to come to see the performance this year was very much like a dream come true, he said.

“The show itself is beautiful. The colors are vibrant. It’s unbelievable. The performance [and] the dancers are just incredible. It’s definitely worth coming to see,” Mr. Wilder said.

Shen Yun performs ethnic, folk, and story-based dances, accompanied by a one-of-a-kind orchestra that combines Western symphonic instruments with traditional Chinese instruments.

“I like the Tibetan men’s dance,” Wilder said. “Basically, I love all the dances. The colors, the vibrancy, and just the story behind it as well. So it’s very, very nice.”

The Shen Yun performers were simply “incredible” and “heavenly,” he added.

Reporting by Yeawen Hung and Frank Fang.

The Epoch Times is a proud sponsor of Shen Yun Performing Arts. We have covered audience reactions since Shen Yun’s inception in 2006.