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.

“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.

“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.”