DETROIT—”I’m delighted,” exclaimed Chris Weinig, general manager of Insurance Services for Mercedes-Benz Financial Services USA, after viewing Shen Yun Performing Arts on Sunday, Jan. 29, at the Detroit Opera House.
Mr. Weinig recently moved to the US from Germany. He said that “artistically the choreography, the synchronicity of the dance, the technique, were just outstanding.”
According to the company’s website, classical Chinese dance has a long history of thousands of years. It has become a complete system of dance embodying traditional aesthetic principles with its unique dance movements, rhythms, and inner meaning. In a collection of short pieces, audiences travel from the legends of the culture’s creation over 5,000 years ago through to the story of Falun Dafa in China today.
“I didn’t know that freedom of expression, freedom of religion, is such an issue,” said Mr. Weinig. He was referring to the dance The Choice, which depicts the persecution of Falun Dafa, an ancient mind-body practice that is still persecuted in China today.
Mr. Weinig said he was glad that it was integrated in the performance. “I think it’s important that people are aware. It was a nice artistic way to transport that message.”
Mr. Weinig commented that classical Chinese dance was diverse and very unique. “I think folding 5,000 years of culture and history into a dance is something that’s unique.”
He particularly enjoyed the Tibetan dance Khata for Gods. “Very beautiful,” he said.
In this dance, the dancers step and stomp, spin and soar with joyful, vibrant energy. In their hands they hold the Khata, a traditional scarf presented to guests. Here they offer it to the gods as a sign of reverence and devotion, describes the program.
Mr. Weinig commented on “the nice integration” of Western and Eastern instruments in the Shen Yun Orchestra. “It was very lively, very authentic”, he said.
He said that the Shen Yun Orchestra gave “a very nice performance.” He appreciated how “they mixed a little bit of traditional Chinese instruments into philharmonic sound.”
Reporting by Charlie Lu and Nataly Teplitsky.
Shen Yun Performing Arts, based in New York, tours the world on a mission to revive traditional Chinese culture. The Shen Yun Performing Arts International Company, one of Shen Yun’s three equally large companies, will next perform in Kansas, Missouri, on Tuesday, Jan. 31.
For more information, visit ShenYunPerformingArts.org.
