ROME—On Jan. 31, Shen Yun Performing Arts received a welcome reception from Italian senators at the Senate of Italy, followed by a tour of the historic senate chamber.

The invitation was extended by Senator Giulio Terzi di Sant'Agata, president of the Senate’s EU Affairs Committee and former Italian Foreign Minister.

Also attending the reception were Senator Cinzia Pellegrino, head of Rome’s Department for the Protection of Party Victims, City Councilor Federico Rocca, and Matteo Angioli, Secretary-General of the Global Committee for the Rule of Law (GCRL), among others.

During the 2025 season, Shen Yun will present nearly 300 performances in at least 61 cities across 14 European countries, reaching an audience of 600,000—an unprecedented scale. Terzi described this as a remarkable success in cultural diplomacy.

“This is something truly extraordinary,” he said, attributing Shen Yun’s widespread appeal to its presentation of culture, humanity, values, historical knowledge, and China’s 5,000-year civilization. “You represent beauty, you represent the divinity of the human being, and dance is the perfect expression of all this.”

Terzi mentioned the widespread recognition and support Shen Yun has received in Italy and other free nations. At the same time, he expressed regret over the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) attempts to obstruct Shen Yun’s performances, emphasizing Italy’s long-standing historical ties with China, dating back to figures like Marco Polo and Matteo Ricci, the Italian scholar revered in China as the sage from the West.

“So my wishes are sincerely felt, and are convinced wishes of always greater success to Shen Yun, and also to the values that Shen Yun is representing with these performances,” he said.

Terzi said that Shen Yun’s values of truth, compassion, and forbearance are deeply aligned with European ideals, also describing it as “an exemplary culture” that reflects the very foundation of European civilization, as enshrined in European treaties and historical traditions.

“This [European values] is something which matches exactly with the values that Shen Yun is representing. So the best wishes for the New Year,” he said.

Terzi presented a gift to Shen Yun, with principal dancer Angelia Wang accepting it on behalf of the ensemble.

Terzi described the performance as a perfect example of “cultural diplomacy,” using art and beauty as a medium to share universal values. “Shen Yun is the bearer of a universal message of harmony, respect, and above all freedom,” he stated.

She added that she had also received books about the CCP’s forced organ harvesting of Falun Gong practitioners and that they helped her “understand and cast the gravity of the mass violations committed by the Chinese regime throughout the world.”

Falun Gong, also known as Falun Dafa, gained immense popularity after it was introduced to the public in the 1990s, and in 1999 the CCP banned it outright, launching an intense persecution overnight. Still today, Falun Gong practitioners in China are subjected to persecution, including arbitrary detention, torture, and forced organ harvesting. Whistleblowers have also recently revealed efforts from CCP leadership to intensify overseas persecution of Falun Gong practitioners, including targeting Shen Yun, which human rights advocates have termed transnational repression.

Pellegrino said she would further raise awareness of the forced organ harvesting atrocities and planned to bring it up in an upcoming Senate hearing.

He said that the universal values of kindness, courage, tolerance, compassion, justice, and truth have been ingrained in the Chinese people for millennia.

“No matter where in the world you come from or what culture you grew up in, we can all benefit from these traditional Chinese values,” he added.

He elaborated on why the CCP has sought to shut down Shen Yun.

“Shen Yun revives China’s divinely inspired culture, but the CCP is officially atheist. The heavenly beauty that Shen Yun presents is precisely what the regime seeks to corrupt and erase,” he said.

But audiences worldwide have made Shen Yun’s mission a success. Russano noted the overwhelming demand for Shen Yun in Rome, which had not hosted Shen Yun since 2018.

“We heard that the shows here in Rome sold out quickly, we can understand how much people have longed for Shen Yun to return,” he said.

“Italy is an extraordinary country with an invaluable artistic tradition and cultural heritage. Today, we are in Rome, the beautiful eternal city, one of the sources of the artistic and cultural heritage of the West,” he added.

“We extend our deepest appreciation to the Artistic Director of Shen Yun for bringing to the world a unique and rare message of beauty, morality, and spirituality. The revival of traditional Chinese culture is not only enriching—it brings hope,” Russano said.

Following the reception, Shen Yun artists toured the historic Italian Senate. Surrounding the chamber’s upper walls, four guiding principles were inscribed: Fortezza (Strength), Diritto (Rights), Concordia (Harmony), and Giustizia (Justice)

After the tour, Rome City Councilor Federico Rocca expressed his delight at Shen Yun’s presence.

Veteran principal dancer Angelia Wang shared her perspective.

“Although I’ve been performing on stage for over a decade, I consider every show to be incredibly precious. Each audience, each performance is entirely unique,” she said.

She explained that the mission of spreading traditional Chinese culture and the audience’s deep appreciation for art keep the performers going.

“Because of this, I never feel like it’s too difficult or exhausting. In fact, these challenges are quite easy to overcome,” she said.