WASHINGTON, D.C.—Amit Ganjo, CEO of an aerospace company, and his wife, Rohini Ganjo, a professor, watched Shen Yun Performing Arts at The Kennedy Center Opera House on Feb. 3.
“It was beautiful, mesmerizing,” said Mrs. Ganjo. “The storytelling was very nice.”
“It was a very nicely done show, very nicely orchestrated,” said Mr. Ganjo, who enjoyed Shen Yun’s patented
animated backdrop. “The special effects when you’re coordinating with the digital effects on the backdrop with the real thing—that requires a lot of practice and coordination. So that was pretty impressive, how that was done very seamlessly and nicely, and it gives it a nice effect as well.“
Based in New York, Shen Yun’s name means “the beauty of divine beings dancing.” Since its inception in 2006,
Shen Yun has expanded from one to eight equally-sized companies that tour around the world simultaneously, realizing its mission to revive traditional Chinese culture through classical Chinese dance and
music.
Dance and music are often hailed as universal languages that can transcend cultural barriers, and Mr. Ganjo said that he had no trouble understanding the performance.
“The body language, the expressions were very nicely done,” he said. “It was very relatable … the different storylines because every story had a moral and a theme behind it.”
“There’s a message in every story, which is what I think was very interesting and appealing because there are a lot of shows out there that just are dancers and stuff. But there was
a storyline behind each of the performances, each of the acts … It connects with the audience, in my opinion.”
Mr. Ganjo said that the message he saw in Shen Yun’s performance was to “be kind, be genuine, be honest.”
As a professor, Mrs. Ganjo acknowledged
Shen Yun’s educational value and said, “There’s a lot to learn” from the performance, which she described as an uplifting experience.
“Everything comes with a meaning,” she said. “All of the stories and all of the songs, and that is very nice. It makes you feel warm and happy.”
“The whole thing, it makes you feel calm and happy, and [it’s] just beautiful,” said Mrs. Ganjo. “It’s very, very … rewarding.”
Reporting by Sherry Dong and Wandi Zhu.
The Epoch Times is a proud sponsor of Shen Yun Performing Arts. We have covered audience reactions since Shen Yun’s inception in 2006.