SEATTLE—Attorney Stephen Eggerman and his wife, Jeanette, a professional portrait photographer, were moved by the music and dance of Shen Yun Performing Arts at Seattle’s Marion Oliver McCaw Hall, on April 5.

“I’ve never seen Chinese dance like this before,” said Mr. Eggerman, “Seems to have a combination of gymnastics and ballet.” She was referring to the aerial flips, spins and leaps which are all part of the classical Chinese dance.

Shen Yun stages mainly classical Chinese dance, as well as some folk dances from China’s diverse ethnicities. The large-scale dance performances involve a large cast and intricate choreography.

“How do you write for that? Everything has to be so precise,” stated Mrs. Eggerman, who found entertainment across all the different aspects of the performance: “The video, and the music, and the dance. And then they take it from city to city and have to figure it all out on a new stage, a new city. It’s very surprising, very entertaining, very unique.”

Months of training and preparation culminate each winter in the Shen Yun Performing Arts world tour, and every year Shen Yun travels for six months, performing in some 20 countries and over 100 cities in an effort to revive the nearly lost Chinese culture.

For 5,000 years, divine culture flourished in the land of China. Built on traditional aesthetics, it was once passed down among the people, in imperial courts, and through ancient plays.

“I wasn’t expecting it to go through the history of classical Chinese dance like it did,” said Mr. Eggerman.

“It’s very unique,” added Mrs. Eggerman, “It’s just very clever.”

Reporting by Michael Green and Lauren DePhillips

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