MIAMI—Linsley Hannah and Joaquin Rivas said they learned a great deal seeing Shen Yun Performing Arts, from the history of 5,000 years of Chinese civilization to the divinely inspired culture that touched on something universal. And through it all, original music blending East and West carried the message home.
“It touches your soul, inside,” Mr. Rivas, a physician, said of the music of Shen Yun after the two saw the matinee performance on Jan. 11 at the Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts in Miami.
“I think it’s so beautiful, and it’s so relaxing, and it’s very different than any other part of the world,” said Ms. Hannah, a psychologist. “It’s very different. It’s very genuine, and it’s non-comparable to any place in the world.”
Oftentimes, a Shen Yun program also includes a solo performed by an erhu virtuoso, expertly captivating audiences with an instrument that has only two strings but a range that spans all of human emotion.
“The music generated by that instrument goes to your soul,” Mr. Rivas said. “It gives you the peace. It touches your brain in a different dimension. It puts you in a different place where you are just by listening to it. I wish I had one in my house and learned how to do it.”
“I thought it was very beautiful and educational. And I also believe that it was very inspiring,” she said. “It reminded me that we are lucky to live in a place where we have freedom.”
Ms. Hannah and Mr. Rivas said the traditional culture they saw was a universal one that spoke to them as well.
“The show is excellent,” Mr. Rivas said. “It went above and beyond my expectations.”
‘Something That Humanity Needs’
Also moved by this universal spirituality was Charles Taylor, a pastor and entrepreneur.“The message of spirituality, the message of creation, the message of oneness, the message of unity, the message of love flowed through every song and every dance and every story, and I loved it,” said Mr. Taylor, who saw the matinee performance with Elena Belova, an entrepreneur.
“I loved the show from the very beginning to the very end and everything in between. It was absolutely phenomenal. The music, the dance, the message was just so deep and moving and heart-moving. It was beautiful. Absolutely amazing.”
“I believe that this world needs more love, and this show helps us how to find this love, and how to be just good and kind,” she said. “We need it. The world needs it.”
“It’s very, very, very important, and I’m so glad that this show travels all around the globe and more people can see it and more people can relate to that,” she said.
Mr. Taylor said the message of compassion was present in every story in Shen Yun, whether it was a dramatic scene from history, or a comedic episode from the classic novel “Journey to the West.”
“I think in every story there was an aspect of mercy and compassion,” he said. “And acceptance and, well, and even forgiveness ... compassion, mercy, forgiveness, grace, it’s a very strong message. Beautiful message. I loved it. I was just sitting there just like ‘wait, wait what’s going on here?’ I think it was amazing.”
“It’s that message of love that unites humanity. And that’s through every culture and every religion,” he said.
“There’s a saying like you come for the food, and you stay for the company. And for this, it’s like you come for the show. But the deep spiritual message is so deep and beautiful that it’s like, it’s way more than just dancing and singing and performing. It’s not just the performance,” he said.
“It’s something that humanity needs. To come together to enjoy to look around and see people from every background receiving the same message of love and spirituality and a creator that loves humanity.”
