MEMPHIS, Tenn.—Chinese culture is 5,000 years long and very few nations in the world have a history that can compare. Shen Yun Performing Arts is presenting the beauty of Chinese culture to the world.
“I think Western culture has nothing that compares to that. I found it very impressive,” said Kimberly Collins, senior vice president of operations for a marketing and software company.
Shen Yun’s mission is to bring Chinese culture back to its former glory from before communism took power.
“I thought it was really enlightening. I really enjoyed the cultural exchange and I felt like it made the audience think, right? And I felt like we were sort of on an awareness or an enlightenment journey together,” said Paul Collins, a supply chain manager.
“Just the emotion of the dance and the movement and the music and everything altogether. I felt it very moving. It brought me to tears several times. I didn’t actually cry, but I felt myself tear up,” Mrs. Collins said.
Shen Yun’s dances often retell stories from Chinese history, myth, legend, or literature. Many of these stories portray the growth of a person as they choose between good and evil.“I enjoyed how the characters from the various dances went on their journeys towards enlightenment and also how they touched on some of the politics for religious freedom and things of that nature,” Mr. Collins said.
Shen Yun was founded in 2006 when overseas Chinese gathered with the common goal of using art to tell the world about the atrocities happening in China.“I think it says a lot. The dedication and ... I don’t know where these people originate from, but the fact that they have established in New York to study traditional Chinese culture is something to think about,” Ms. Collins expressed.
Shen Yun’s live orchestra is a unique combination of traditional Chinese instruments and a classic Western ensemble.“The music was fantastic. And I enjoyed the exposure to some instruments that I normally don’t come across in my everyday life, right? So it was very, again, very enlightening,” Mr. Collins said.
The singers are trained in the bel canto technique and the digital backdrop provides a translation of Chinese songs for audiences.“The soprano was fantastic. She sounded like an angel to me,” Ms. Collins said.
“Fantastic performance by both singers,” Mr. Collins added.
Reporting by Sally Sun and Maria Han.
The Epoch Times is a proud sponsor of Shen Yun Performing Arts. We have covered audience reactions since Shen Yun’s inception in 2006.
