AUCKLAND, New Zealand—“I wanted for a long, long time to see this show,” said Mrs. Elena Casaenu when she saw Shen Yun Performing Arts, on Friday April 11, at the Aotea Centre ASB Theatre in Auckland.

Mrs. Casaenu, a supervisor with IPA Consumer Brands, a pharmaceutical company, was very happy to be at the performance tonight with her husband.

Shen Yun Performing Arts is a New York based company which tours the world bringing Chinese traditional arts and culture to the world. Its mission is to revive 5,000 years of civilization.

Shen Yun’s website reads, “Every costume in a Shen Yun performance is presented with brilliant colours, displaying a splendid spectacle.”

This made a big impression on Mrs. Casaenu.

“It’s very interesting, the performance, the acrobatics and the costume are … I’m blown away with the costumes, they are beautiful.

The website continues, “Magnificently costumed dancers, the world’s elite move in poetic arrangements that evoke pastoral beauty, imperial drama and the glory of an ancient civilization.”

Mrs. Casaenu also appreciated the live orchestra.

The website explains; “blending two of the world’s greatest musical traditions, Chinese and Western. Ancient instruments like the two stringed erhu, the plucked pipa and a range of percussion instruments lead the melody on top of a full Western orchestra—strings, woodwinds and brass—creating a refreshing new sound.”

“The music; it’s really nice.” said Mrs. Casaenu. “It’s very new for me but it’s nice, the orchestra is live. It’s the best show, seeing dancing with the live orchestra.”

The website continues, “China was once known as the Divine Land, its glorious culture is said to have been brought down from the heavens.”

Mrs. Casaenu felt she learned more about the Chinese traditional culture through the performance.

She said,” It’s really nice to see and try to understand other people’s culture. This show actually shows New Zealand a part of China we actually don’t know.”

“It touched my heart, especially that part with the mother and the girls, oh wow.”

Mrs. Casaenu was referring to the dance called The Steadfast Lotus, where mother and daughter are practicing truthfulness, compassion and Tolerance, the principles of Falun Gong and are persecuted for their beliefs, a reality in China today.

Shen Yun website explains, “The Chinese Communist Party, whose regime and ideology are in stark contrast with the traditional culture of China, has targeted Falun Gong for persecution.”

Mrs. Casaenu said, “it was really like life in communist China, so it was a little bit scary. But really, the performance [was] perfect.”

In her closing, Mrs. Casaenu said “I like all the dancers, they are beautiful.

“The girls are stunning and the costumes are very, very nice, so I’m very pleased I came to the show.”

“I would recommend for everyone to come and see this show, because it’s really really nice and beautiful and it’s such a great night for us. … I really enjoyed the show.”

Reporting by Margo MacVicar and Judy Shakespear

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.