VANCOUVER, Canada—As the curtain rose to the first scene of Shen Yun Performing Arts on Saturday evening, Jan. 23, Winda Higgins was overwhelmed with emotion.

“I was in tears, because I wanted to see it so bad and then when I got to see it, I’m like ‘wow,’ everything that I dreamed,” Ms. Higgins said.

“It’s overwhelming, believe me … I’m speechless. Everything about it, every moment of it is wonderful.”

Being originally from Indonesia with Chinese heritage, Ms. Higgins said Shen Yun brought to life all the stories she had grown up with, and immersed her in the artwork and culture of China.

“Everything just looks so beautiful, it gives you goosebumps every time,” she said.

Beauty

Shen Yun has made Vancouver its first Canadian stop of the 2016 world tour, presenting four performances at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre on Jan. 22-24.

Mercedes Fontalvo and her husband Len Hiebert enjoyed the beauty in the Shen Yun performance and the presentation of China’s ancient history through the dances.

Ms. Fontalvo said the Shen Yun female dancers had a very noticeable femininity in their movements, and they had elegance and harmony. In one word, what Shen Yun offered was “beauty,” she said.

“When they dance, it’s like they were floating, very delicate,” she said.

Mr. Hiebert said he enjoyed the historical value of the dance and the songs, and learned more about the Chinese people and their ancient culture.

Powerful

Sharon and Paul Slack pointed to many different aspects that make Shen Yun an impressive performance.

“Very colourful and very talented, beautiful singing,” said Ms. Slack, adding that she really enjoyed the performance.

Shen Yun is based in New York, where it enjoys artistic freedom and can freely pursue its mission of reviving China’s divinely inspired culture without the suppression in present-day China. The company currently cannot perform in China under the communist regime. 

Looking around the theatre and seeing the many ethnic Chinese people who had come to see the performance, Mr. Slack said he feels very lucky that Shen Yun is performing right here in Vancouver so he also has a chance to be a part of it.

He said it’s a shame that China’s rich culture has been destroyed in today’s China, and he praised the Shen Yun artists for their work, saying they are “absolutely incredible.”

The great artistry in the performance combined with the content and stories in the different pieces left a deep impression.

“It all pulls together very well with the spiritual part of it; it makes it all that much more powerful,” Mr. Slack said.

New York-based Shen Yun Performing Arts has four touring companies that perform simultaneously around the world. The company that performed in Vancouver was World Company. For more information, visit Shen Yun Performing Arts.

Epoch Times considers Shen Yun Performing Arts the significant cultural event of our time. We have proudly covered audience reaction since Shen Yun’s inception in 2006.