TORONTO—Figure skating coach Lyndsay Burrows was surprised by the beauty of Shen Yun Performing Arts when she attended the company’s evening performance with her family at the Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts on March 29.

Ms. Burrows thought there is no better name to describe the company.

Reflecting on the story-based dance that raises awareness of the innocent people still being persecuted by the Chinese Communist Party, and highlighting the strength of those standing up for their beliefs—she said, “You could feel that tension and the contrast [between] that which persecutes and keeps people down … the heaviness in the dark. But [then came the] light and bright and buoyant and it was beautiful.”

“I love it. We’ve seen this before. [The children] have not. We’ve been waiting to come back. It was beautiful, just as it was before, and it’s a different rendition. … [It’s] another way to tell a story.”

Shen Yun performers are masters of classical Chinese dance, an ancient and highly expressive art form dating back thousands of years. Unlike the modern, military-influenced styles often seen in China today, Shen Yun preserves and performs this tradition in its most authentic form, as it was originally passed down through generations.

Ms. Burrow was very impressed by the dancers’ technique and skill.

The dancers were “fabulous. Unbelievable. The technique and just the awareness, their balance, and their lines went on forever. They had such grace.”

“It’s like we’re part of the masterpieces. It was a masterpiece because it was a piece of the master. [Shen Yun displayed] that idea of grandeur and what we can create when there’s purity and connection.”

To sum up her experience, Ms. Burrows said art is “transcendent and it takes us to a place that is within our soul and we can all feel and resonate with that light.”