VANCOUVER, Canada—Music is the unspoken language of dance and drama. The musicians of Shen Yun Performing Arts accompany Shen Yun’s dancers flawlessly as they bring to audiences the irreplaceable experience of live music.

He noted that seeing Shen Yun was his late wife’s way of celebrating life, and that the couple had experienced Shen Yun together twice before this occasion.

Mr. Grunewaldt commended the artists on their “depth of feeling and the amount of skill required to perform at this level in front of a live audience day after day.”

“The quality of the whole show? Five stars, it’s excellent,” he added.

“I like the concept of adapting history to modern life, and that’s the best way that I can express that. Live performances, genuine, important, and valid,” said Mr. Grunewaldt.

“And freedom of speech is paramount,” he added.

“I do know about that because of the protesting 10 years ago, 15 to 20 years ago. So I also think, ‘Wow, you’re still fighting that?’ That made me sad [that] they’re still jailing people for that,” Ms. Minifie said.

Falun Dafa, centred on the principles of truthfulness, compassion, and tolerance, became immensely popular in the 1990s in China. However, this led to jealousy from the head of the Chinese Communist Party, who viewed it as a threat to the Party’s atheistic ideology and initiated the persecution in 1999.

Although Shen Yun tackles serious issues in its production, the dances are uplifting and filled with hope, beauty, and inspiration. Humor can also be found.

“I enjoy the comedy the best, and I enjoyed the whole idea that it’s before communism,” said Ms. Minifie.