SEATTLE—Jack Story, his daughter Hailey, and his sister Shannon had seen many performances at the Marion Oliver McCaw Hall, but April 2 was their first time seeing Shen Yun Performing Arts.

“It’s absolutely amazing—very elegant and beautiful,” said Mr. Story, a chief information officer.

“I’m really enjoying it—spectacular performance,” Ms. Shannon Story said. “The dancing, the gentleman that was singing—was unbelievable. It’s been a great experience, and we’re only at intermission—I can’t wait for the rest of it.”

“The dance and the message that you get, even though we don’t speak the language, it still tells the story through movement and the music. So you still feel the same emotion, even though there’s no language being spoken ... it’s beautiful,” Mr. Story said.

“It goes to show you across all cultures, all races, that there are people who believe in a higher spirit, regardless of culture and race,” he said.

“It’s sad to hear that you can’t have these kind of performances actually in China, but I actually think it’s great. I think all countries and cultures should be able to see the history of how their culture was defined,” Mr. Story said.