PORTLAND, Ore.—Opera singer and painter Kelly Barnson and her husband Jeff, a pilot, have always loved the arts and so decided to attend Shen Yun Performing Art’s evening performance at the Keller Auditorium on Jan 21.
As a fellow singer, Mrs. Barnson was delighted to hear Shen Yun’s soprano performance.
“I enjoyed her [singing.] It was beautiful. It’s very hard to sing in that language, so lovely,” she said.
Mr. Barnson, who has a deep love for tradition, was touched by the performers’ mission to revive traditional values and culture.
“I think it’s very important to reach back to the traditions of our forefathers,” he said, happy to see Shen Yun’s effort in preserving such a profound culture imbued with spirituality and artistry.
“I love the message. It’s a really, really nice spiritual message of peace and love and hope and God,” Mrs. Barnson said.
“We are both very spiritually grounded people. I would love it if all the Chinese people could enjoy their peace and their freedom and their ability to worship. I would love that.”
Mr. Barson particularly enjoyed Shen Yun’s story dance depicting people of faith in China standing up and upholding their faith even in the face of brutal persecution at the hands of the Chinese Communist Party.
“I liked the [piece about the persecution] where the young man was blinded, and then through God, was able to see again,” he said.
“Very spiritual. I wasn’t expecting it. So, it was nice to have a wholesome message.”
Upon learning that Shen Yun’s eight equally-sized groups perform around the world each year, Mrs. Barnson said, “It’s wonderful.” She emphasized that traditional Chinese culture is something everyone should have the chance to appreciate.
