GAINESVILLE, Fla.—Shen Yun performed for the first time in Gainesville on Dec. 30. Mary Lou Price attended the performance at the Curtis M. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts along with her husband and daughter.

Mrs. Price especially appreciated the grace of the performance. “My favorite part was how graceful everything was. Everything was very subdued, very elegant.” Mrs. Price and her husband have their own business, ArmaLaser, which manufactures add-on laser-targeting devices for firearms.

Shen Yun performs classical and ethnic Chinese dance. Through dance, the company aims to bring stories and values of ancient China to a wider audience.

“It was beautiful. It was very inspiring. I have to go home and make sure my daughter learns how to dance,” Mrs. Price said.

She said the performance piqued her interest in Chinese history. “I didn’t realize how spiritual their history is. I think it’s very interesting, and I'd like to learn more about that.”

Both the dancing and singing impressed her: “First it was the dancing, then it was the singing, and then it was the dancing again. I enjoyed the whole thing.”

Knowing Their Heritage

Chris Bauerle, his wife, and his three daughters from China also attended Shen Yun’s Gainesville performance on Dec. 30.

“The program is terrific—incredible dance, incredible music, very well-choreographed. A beautiful telling of the Chinese culture,” said Mr. Bauerle, who is a pharmaceutical sales person.

“I have three daughters from China, and to bring them to see this is a dream for their mom and me.” He said he thinks his girls are excited to have seen their culture and where they came from.

With Chinese history being so long and so diverse, “it’s terrific to see [a performance] by folks who are Chinese and know their craft,” Mr. Bauerle said. “It’s a terrific experience!”

The performance taught Mr. Bauerle more about the spiritual meditation practice Falun Dafa, also called Falun Gong. Its core values are truthfulness, compassion, and forbearance. “It was nice to see [the information] in the program itself, and it needs to be spread a little bit more throughout the world.”

Shen Yun Performing Arts New York Company will return to Florida in January with three performances in Jacksonville, Jan. 24–25. Shen Yun will return again in the spring with performances in Orlando, Fort Myers, St. Petersburg, Miami, and West Palm Beach.

Reporting by NTD and Nicholas Zifcak

New York-based Shen Yun Performing Arts has four touring companies that perform simultaneously around the world. For more information, visit ShenYunPerformingArts.org

The Epoch Times considers Shen Yun Performing Arts the significant cultural event of our time. We have proudly covered audience reactions since Shen Yun’s inception in 2006.