SHEN YUN PERFORMING ARTS REVIEWS

Shen Yun ‘Helps Us to Draw Our Cultures Together,’ Says Entrepreneur

Jan 07, 2024

AUSTIN, Texas—After watching Shen Yun Performing Arts for the first time on Jan. 6, entrepreneur and company owner Craig Herrmann said the evening was “absolutely vibrant.”

“The show was amazing. I loved the costumes, the vibrancy, and the expressions on [the performers’] faces while dancing. They’re just absolutely beautiful,” he said at the Long Center for the Performing Arts.

“The culture they shared with us is such an amazing thing because we don’t have a lot of that here. So, it’s nice to see that, and we appreciate it very much.”

Based in New York, Shen Yun’s mission is to revive China’s 5,000 years of divinely inspired culture.

Before the communist party’s spread of atheism, Chinese people were very spiritual and had a deep belief in the divine. For thousands of years, their values and day-to-day actions were strictly governed by the teachings of Buddhism, Daoism, and Confucianism.

Mr. Herrmann loved that Shen Yun is committed to bringing back these values through their story-based dances.

“The stories were amazing. It’s very relatable and has a lot of emotions to it. There was so much humor in it, yet at the same time, there was seriousness,” he said.

“I loved the way the spiritual aspect of everything came through—from the heavenly to the earthly—this transpires very well in our culture, too.”

He explained that though we all come from different cultures, our spiritual beliefs tie us together “from the way we think, the way we live—to just everyday life. So, to put that into dance, it helps us to draw our cultures together.”

For its 2024 touring season, Shen Yun’s eight equally-sized companies will be performing in over 200 cities across five continents.

Met with wide acclaim since its establishment in 2006, the company can be expected to return each year with a brand-new set of choreography and musical compositions.

Reflecting on the evening, Mr. Herrman said the main message he would take home with him from Shen Yun is “unity, kindness, generosity, and the reflection of the rich versus poor.”

“I think that culture—whether it’s Chinese or American—no matter what country you’re in, there is unity in the mindset that, it’s not how much you have or how little you have, it’s what’s in your heart.”

Reporting by Sonia Wu and Jennifer Tseng.

The Epoch Times is a proud sponsor of Shen Yun Performing Arts. We have covered audience reactions since Shen Yun’s inception in 2006.