WASHINGTON—During its successful extended run, Shen Yun Performing Arts intrigued and entertained audiences at the Kennedy Center for the Arts from Feb. 20 through 28 and March 1 and 2.
Excellent Production
Joseph Benkowski, an investor, said the history and culture delivered through [Shen Yun] was “educational, enlightening,” and “very entertaining.”
Media mogul Armstrong Williams praised “the cinematography, the staging where everything looks so real as if people were coming out of the sky when the girls were flying.”
Connie Morella, a diplomat who has served as an ambassador and member of Congress, said, “It touched every facet of the arts. I mean, whether you’re talking about the appointments, the music, the scenery, the sets, everything about it all came together. It was magical and artistic and it makes me want to exercise.”
Divinely Inspired Message
“The stories were powerful,“ Virginia State Senator Barbara Favola said. She felt one of the takeaways was that ”if you live your values, you’re eventually going to be happy,“ even though you will face ”a lot of challenges ahead.”“[Shen Yun] is an expression of creativity and also respect for tradition. It’s something that is rooted in tradition but it expresses it in a vibrant and new manner,” said Piero Tozzi, staff director of the Congressional-Executive Commission on China. “Whenever you see human creativity and the pursuit of excellence, that’s very inspiring.”
“I enjoyed the message. It was a very good show. I enjoyed watching other cultures express the beauty of their culture,” said Adrian Ackley, who works in law enforcement.
“There is something else going on here. There’s a message—A strong message is being portrayed through this play,” said Bianca Gracia, executive director of Latinos for America First. “But if you don’t know what to look for, you’re just thinking you’re in the arts and you’re seeing people dance and sing and play an instrument.”
Highly Trained Performers
“Beautiful, beautiful. The choreography that goes into the presentations is amazing,” said Frank Lane, who is now retired from a career in the Department of Defense, State Department, and National Security Council.
“I was so impressed with the gracefulness of the ladies, in particular. And the performance of the men, they were very, very good,” retired Air Force Colonel Moss Kendrix.
Retired Army officer James O’Beirne said, “[The dancers] are all supremely talented. And I also think the femininity of the female dancers is exquisite. Just the balance between the two dancers. There’s a symbiosis there that’s just remarkable.”
“You can see what effort goes into the dance and the emotional exchange between the dancer and the audience. They’re giving 100 percent. It’s beautiful,” Dennis Spyra said.
Zach Vorhies, a software engineer and free speech activist, said he had also come to the performance through an interest in what was happening to Falun Gong practitioners.
There are still opportunities to see Shen Yun in the greater Washington area. You can see Shen Yun in Baltimore, Maryland, and Philadelphia and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in March and May.
