BOSTON—On Dec. 28,
Shen Yun Performing Arts opened the first of its five consecutive shows at the Boch Center Wang Theatre. Eric Love, founder and director of the LARP Adventure Program, and his mother Pat Cronin, a government director, were in attendance.
The two thoroughly enjoyed their evening and felt uplifted and inspired by Shen Yun’s program. Mr. Love, especially, said he felt an emotional charge throughout the show that gave him hope for the future.
“It was absolutely fantastic and incredibly artistic—incredible dancers, music, and talent—I loved the cultural heritage,” said Ms. Cronin.
“It’s really, really important for the world to understand the kind of
beauty and historical stories that Shen Yun can offer people. I’m going to tell everybody I know to come see this.”
The New York-based Shen Yun was
established in 2006 by leading Chinese artists who had fled the persecution of the communist party.
Once known as the “Land of the Divine,” Chinese people once believed that their civilization was a gift from the heavens. For 5,000 years, China’s culture was built on the values and virtues inspired by the spiritual teachings of Buddhism, Daoism, and Confucianism.
However, after the communist party’s violent takeover in 1949, China’s traditional culture went through decades of systematic destruction.
Now, in the free world, these artists are seeking to revive traditional
Chinese culture and bring to the stage, through dance and music, the glory of pre-communist China.
As an educator, Mr. Love said Shen Yun is very authentic and did a wonderful job of expressing the traditional values of China through
dance.“How do you bring thousands of years of tradition to a literacy that not only kids these days can understand but the elders as well? I appreciated that,” he expressed.
“I’m a big fan of
Chinese history, and I’m a martial artist, but to see everything through dance—the theories, ideas, and philosophies that are being shut down [in modern-day China]—maybe that’s something the world could use. I’m going home to look that up right now. Do some research and see what that has to offer me and how I can move forward in my life.”
He also thought the
performance delivered “some very powerful messages,” and it reminded him that “humanity needs to think about compassion and make that a priority over power.”
Ms. Cornin couldn’t agree more.
“Spirituality was absolutely immersive in the show,” she said. “The moral stories, the legends, [the idea that] we should live with kindness and live with goodness—that’s really important.”
Reporting by Frank Liang and Jennifer Tseng.
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