MONTREAL—Jean Zigby is a physician who works in palliative care. After seeing Shen Yun Performing Arts on April 10, he complimented every element of the
performance.
“The show was fantastic. It demonstrated incredible persistence, love for dance, and creativity. The colors of the costumes were absolutely phenomenal. The integration with
the backdrop was beautiful, but the dancers themselves were just heavenly; they just really expressed themselves and their bodies in a way that we can all only dream to,” Mr. Zigby said.
Shen Yun is based in New York, and its
mission is to revive 5,000 years of Chinese civilization.
“I felt that it was a glorious celebration of culture that they were able to perform it in front of thousands of people around the world,” Mr. Zigby said.
He also shared that Shen Yun’s endeavor to share culture and tradition with the world is beautiful.
“I think this experience has been beautiful, and if this experience was created out of traditional culture and people wish to preserve it, then it’s a beautiful thing to do,” he said.
Shen Yun’s artists are trained in classical Chinese dance, one of the most comprehensive dance systems in the world.
“The level of their dance is as good as anything I’ve ever seen, so I’m just happy to have been able to see it. ... I felt envious that they were moving their bodies so beautifully and they were able to express themselves,” he said.
One of the dance stories was a retelling of current events in China.
Falun Gong practitioners are following their faith in truth, compassion, and forbearance, and are being persecuted by the Chinese Communist Party as a result.
“I felt sadness at the tragedy in which they demonstrated in the suppression of their culture by the current regime, and I felt that it was magnificent,” Mr. Zigby said.
Shen Yun’s live orchestra is a unique combination of traditional Chinese instruments and a classic Western ensemble. Shen Yun also uses dry ice in its performance, which he found to be magical.
“I thought the orchestra was absolutely fantastic, and it was beautiful to see the dry ice flowing over
the orchestra while they were playing. During some of the scenes it it felt very, very magical, especially to be able to see the orchestra at the same time as the dancers,” he said.
Shen Yun’s singers are trained in
bel canto technique, and the digital backdrop provides a translation of the Chinese text being sung.
“The songs were exceptional. They were quite beautiful. I was very impressed to have them integrated in with the dance,” Mr. Zigby said.
Reporting by NTD and Maria Han.
