MELBOURNE, Australia—Shen Yun Performing Arts International Company performed for the forth time at the State Theatre, Arts Centre, Melbourne on the Saturday, March 29.

Totally enjoying the experience was Fran Awcock, retired head librarian of the State Library of Victoria.

“I love it. I love it,” she said.

She was wowed right from the opening piece.

“I think the opening was spectacular. With mist and the dancers emerging.”

In Grand Descent of the Deities divine beings dance in the upper reaches of the cosmos before descending to Earth following the Creator.

Classical Chinese dance is at the heart of the New York based Shen Yun but it also includes folk and ethnic dance.

Ms. Awcock particularly likes Mongolian Chopsticks where according the program book “against a vista of endless blue sky, Mongolian men are gathered in companionship. … they pull together to perform a traditional chopsticks dance.”

She said, “I loved the Mongolian chopsticks. … I think it captivated a lot of the ethnicity of Mongolia.”

Classical Chinese dance includes “aerial flips, spins and leaps which are all part of the classical Chinese dance. Actually, acrobatics emerged from this dance system,” as the company’s website explains.

She enjoyed the variety in the dance pieces saying, “I think the beauty of the dancing, the expertise, the acrobatics are fabulous. And the precision of everybody is just phenomenal.”

The orchestra, which combines the beauty and distinctiveness of Chinese sounds with the power and precision of a Western orchestra, was a highlight for her too.

“I loved the instruments, because there’s a mix of Western and Chinese music—Really wonderful,” she said.

Another hallmark of the company’s productions is the vocal soloists’ use of bel canto operatic technique to sing Chinese lyrics.

“It’s very different to much of Western culture. So that’s what is appealing to a Westerner, as I am. Because we don’t usually see a combination of operatic performance as in the singer,” she said.

 Ms. Awcock was taken by the animated projection of state-of-the-art graphics technology used to create vivid scenes on the backdrop behind the stage.

“I think the backdrop, use of technology is fabulous with the waves, the ocean and the court was absolutely wonderful. It adds the atmosphere to the dancing,”  she said.

Mrs. Awcock summed up her Shen Yun experience with one word. “Magnificent!”

Reporting by NTD Television and Christine Ford

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