TORONTO—Charles “Chuck” Sciberras is a man who knows about hard work. In his over 20 years’ home building experience, he has designed hundreds of projects and become one of the most respected design/cost professionals in Toronto and a partner at successful home building firm Cass-A-Bella Construction. 

On Thursday night, he had the chance to see Shen Yun Performing Arts, the world’s premier classical Chinese dance and music company, at the Sony Centre, and in the performers he recognized not only skill and ability but also their deep sense of commitment to their art.

“A lot of talent,” said Mr. Sciberras in describing the performance. 

“At the end of the day, these are all very talented people and the only way you can get talent is through sacrifice and dedication, and that’s why they’re so good.”

“That’s spectacular to be up on stage and to perform like that–they’re telling a story through dance,” he added. 

Established in 2006 by overseas Chinese artists looking to revive China’s divinely inspired culture, Shen Yun has since toured around the world to over 100 cities on five continents. Its dancers train at the prestigious Fei Tian Academy of the Arts in New York, which prepare some of the world’s foremost classical Chinese dance artists. 

Shen Yun features performances of classical Chinese dance, one of the most comprehensive dance systems in the world, alongside vocal and instrumental soloists and a unique symphony orchestra that combines traditional Western and Chinese instruments. 

An all-new production every year takes the audience on a cultural journey rooted in the Middle Kingdom’s deep spiritual traditions. 

Mr. Sciberras particularly noted this spirituality in the songs.  

“It’s about well-being and goodness and the spirit of life,” he said.

“One of the messages is that life is not all about wealth and gathering things, it’s about being good to one another,” he said.

As a business owner, he feels he can relate to that.

“What I always try to do in my business is to try to keep my homeowners happy–the people that I’m building for–and at the same time I try to keep the tradesmen happy because without them I’m nobody. 

“I’m just like the conductor. I’m conducting everybody,” he said.

In 2014, Mr. Sciberras’s company, Cass-A-Bella Construction, won the Builder of the Year Award and he was selected to be included in The Heritage Registry of Who’s Who, a registry of notable North American industry professionals.  

Mr. Sciberras was also impressed by Shen Yun’s music performed by its live orchestra that blends the best of the Eastern and Western musical traditions.  

“The music is always very good. I myself am a musician, so I always love to listen to music,” he said.  

New York-based Shen Yun Performing Arts has four touring companies that perform around the world. Shen Yun’s International Company will perform in Toronto until Jan. 25. For more information, visit ShenYunPerformingArts.org.

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