HOUSTON—China in the past 70 years has had a completely different image from what China was for the 5,000 years before that. Shen Yun Performing Arts is using dance and music to remind audiences around the world of the long history that China had before communism.
“I think it was magnificent, it was beautiful and inspiring. But I found it also interesting the way that they were talking about the culture and separating it from the current enforced culture,” said Roger Sherril, a retired mental health counselor.
Shen Yun is based in New York and its seven companies tour around the world simultaneously, sharing the beauty of China wherever it goes.
“It’s like if you get two people from two different cultures that have a chance to get to know each other, both of them can grow and realize that, hey, there are good things that come from someplace else that I don’t know about, and then both our lives are enhanced,” Mr. Sherril said.
Leanne and Mark Vassallo at the Shen Yun Performing Arts performance at Wortham Center Brown Theater, on March 25, 2022. Sally Sun/The Epoch Times
Mark and Leanne Vassallo were also in the audience for the March 25 performance. Mr. Vassallo is an executive in health care and his wife is a retired nurse.
The couple was moved by the dance depicting the persecution of Falun Dafa practitioners by the communist regime in China. Falun Dafa is a Chinese spiritual practice of mind and body that became highly popular in China. But the ruling Chinese Communist Party began a persecution of Falun Dafa practitioners after the number of people following the practice exceeded the number of members in the party in 1999.
“The modern story about Falun Dafa, you know, I was just thinking it’s so sad that [the Chinese regime] is still persecuting people in China today. I think there is a lack of understanding [and] respect for others, and I think it’s everywhere in the world today, not just in China. I think we’ve lost respect for each other and the world, and for each other’s cultures,” Ms. Vassallo said.
Charles Nguyen and Julie at Shen Yun Performing Arts at Wortham Center's Brown Theater in Houston, Texas, on March 25, 2022. Sonia Wu/The Epoch Times
Charles Nguyen, a retired chief engineer for the United States Air Force Academy in Colorado, and Julie were also in the Houston audience.
“We can’t ask for more. Everything is fluent, everything is proper. It’s a beautiful show. I highly recommend it,” Mr. Nguyen said.
Reporting by Sonia Wu, Sally Sun, and Maria Han.
The Epoch Times is a proud sponsor of Shen Yun Performing Arts. We have covered audience reactions since Shen Yun’s inception in 2006.
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