DUBLIN, Ireland—Irish hat designer and milliner Aoife Harrison was hugely impressed with the quality and beauty of the costumes and the performances she experienced when she saw Shen Yun on the final show of the Irish leg of their European tour in The Convention Centre Dublin on April 20th.

“I think the costumes are amazing, the dance was beautiful, it was very elegant, and lovely to hear about the civilization of the last 5,000 years,” said Ms. Harrison.

Shen Yun’s website says the following about their costumes, “Every costume in a Shen Yun performance is presented with brilliant colours, displaying a splendid spectacle — from the Tang Dynasty’s “Raiment of Rainbows and Feathers” to imperial dragon robes, phoenix coronets, and cloud capes; from the civil official’s headdress and robes to the warrior’s helmet and armour; and from the traditional rightward cross-collared Han clothing to the ethnic attire of the Manchurian, Tibetan, Dai, Mongol, and Uyghur ethnic groups.”

Ms. Harrison said she experienced positive feelings during the show. “The performance was very uplifting and very positive, it was really beautiful,” she said.

The 5,000 years of Chinese history and culture left an impression on Ms. Harrison, who said that “It was very interesting to watch it to see the stories … It’s very enjoyable to see Chinese culture through dance.”

The section of Shen Yun called The Steadfast Lotus, which deals with the persecution of the peaceful Falun Dafa cultivation practice by China’s communist regime, touched a chord with Ms. Harrison.

“The bits about the meditation were interesting; it is disturbing because a lot of this is not reported in the papers ... it’s very disturbing to see that. It is very much suppressed in the media.”

On Shen Yun’s efforts to revive Chinese culture, Ms. Harrison said, “I think it’s lovely, and doing it through dance is a lovely way of universally getting it across, because you don’t need to use language.”

Reporting by Tian Zeng and Martin Murphy

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.