VANCOUVER—Bryan Tepper, a member of the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia, enjoyed Shen Yun Performing Arts’ sixth and final performance at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre in Vancouver on April 13.
“I love the show. The message involved is fantastic. It’s something we all need to hear,” Mr. Tepper said.
“It’s [about] traditional values and the freedom of people. When they discuss the plight of the people in China that are having their freedoms taken away—the world needs to know about that. … Our traditions matter, whether we come from China or India or Canada.”
Reflecting on the story-based dance depicting the Chinese Communist Party’s persecution of people of faith, Mr. Tepper said “We all need to see the persecution that’s happening.”
“It’s huge for all of us, as people all over the world, to know that this is going on. We don’t want it to spread to other areas of the world either … which is what the show is saying, that people have a need for spirituality in their lives,” he said.
“If they can’t find it in God or a spiritual place, they will look [to] other places—the phone, alcohol, they look to the government to run their lives. If we don’t keep track of our traditions and freedoms, we'll lose them.”
The performers believe that when their hearts are pure, a sense of peace and beauty will naturally be reflected in their art. Mr. Tepper was deeply impressed by this concept, saying, “It does come through.”
“You can feel that they are passing on the message of the dance and the traditions and the stories. ... When they come to the end of the [show,] I think it’s fantastic how they bring up, through song and then through the final performance, what is going on in China. … It brings it all together very well,” he said.
“If they put on a great show, but without the attempts at putting out the message—it'll never get out. If we’re not trying, we’re failing. So, there’s success in just the attempt of getting the message out. Everything they do, it’s fantastic to get this through to everybody.”
Currently, Shen Yun is banned by the Chinese Communist regime from performing in China.
“We’ve got to thank [the performers] just for the show itself,” Mr. Tepper said.
“It’s great, and then on top of that, to try and get out a message of truthfulness and compassion. They are taking risks if they have families still in China. [Shen Yun is] brave for putting the message out. Good for them.”
