VANCOUVER, British Columbia—Hall of Fame broadcaster Steve Erickson says life has been hectic, but he and his wife, Joanne Dewey, who is retired from the banking industry, thought Shen Yun Performing Arts would be the perfect way to slow down and take in some culture.
“I was very impressed. I'd never been to one like this before at all,” Mr. Erickson said after seeing Shen Yun at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre on April 9. “I guess you could say, well, given all the problems in today’s world, this was nice, relaxing, this was good. Takes away from all the problems.”
“I know it’s a changing world, but I like this. I mean, this is good. It takes you back to sort of like yesteryear when you think about what the world was like in a better time. This was great. The performers were unreal,” he said.
Mr. Erickson said the performance had him thinking back to his own childhood and yesteryear, and his father, who fought in World War II. He reflected on the negative changes that have occurred in the world and the positive traditional values that could be brought back.
“One thing I was really impressed with was I saw a lot of young kids here today ... they were really enjoying it,” he said. “It was all ages ... you got people in your 70s, and I’m assuming you probably would have had some people in their 80s, but some young kids as well. It was really good.”
“I think it’s got a big impact on society in general,” he said.
“I would say the message I received was to get you back to real civilization and what yesteryear was like,” he said. “The world knows all about it because we can’t forget the past. We can’t forget our past. We can’t forget the generations before us.”
“This gets you back to the real world. It gets you back to when life was normal and sane. And you can’t forget your past. It’s good for cultures. It’s good for society, and it’s great for the generations to come.
“I would highly recommend this to anybody,” he said. “I would come back.”
It had been Ms. Dewey’s idea to see Shen Yun, as she said she had missed Shen Yun last season and was determined to see it this time.
“Oh, I thought it was fabulous,” she said. “It was just a wonderful, wonderful show. The colors, the expression, the dance, and all that it means. And it shows the both sides of the happy parts, and the not-so-happy parts, and how the world is changing in so many ways, and yet go back and remember the happy parts.”
“It gives me a peaceful outlook for the day and just relax and enjoy and don’t worry about the rest of the world,” she said.
