NEW YORK—”I find it invigorating, culturally wonderful. I find the colors, the costumes, the precision extraordinary. I think that the variation is very, very good—it’s enlightening.”
Investment banker Jeffrey Langberg was part of the sold-out performance at Lincoln Center on Wednesday evening at the first of Shen Yun Performing Arts’ five performance run. The performance ended with a standing ovation and three curtain calls.
“Classical Chinese dance is at the heart of the performance,” says Shen Yun’s website, “along with brilliant costumes, breathtaking projection, and an orchestra that combines both classical Western and Chinese instruments.”
Mr. Langberg, who was watching Shen Yun for the third time, particularly liked the dance How the Monkey King Came to Be, which depicts how the main character of a classic Chinese novel came into existence.
He also liked the dance The Choice. “It’s very enlightening, and reflects some of the problems with contemporary China.”
The Choice shows the modern day persecution of the spiritual practice Falun Gong in China, a meditation practice based on truthfulness, compassion, and forbearance, through a difficult situation between two friends, according to Shen Yun’s program book.
“The interaction between the screen, and the precision with that is unusual, and adds a tremendous amount to it,” said Mr. Langberg, who especially liked the hosts of the performance, who introduce each dance in both Chinese and English. “They add a great touch of class,” he said, “a great comic relief.”
New York-based Shen Yun, says its website, has three performance companies and orchestras—along with solo singers and production staff—criss-crossing the globe with one mission: to revive 5,000 years of traditional Chinese culture that was nearly destroyed by communist rule in China.
‘I Highly Recommend It!’
Nunzio Tarricone, a branch manager at a bank, also attended the performance.
“It was very interesting because it was varying the different stages of cultural experience of the 5,000 years,” Mr. Tarricone said. “The costumes were amazing. The dance…was over the top. It was tremendously more than I expected.”
One of Shen Yun’s trademarks is handcrafted costumes. Its website says: “Every costume in a Shen Yun performance is presented with brilliant colors, displaying a splendid spectacle—from the Tang Dynasty’s “Raiment of Rainbows and Feathers” to imperial dragon robes, phoenix coronets, and cloud capes, from the civil official’s headdress and robes to the warrior’s helmet and armor, and from the traditional rightward cross-collared Han clothing to the ethnic attire of the Manchurian, Tibetan, Dai, Mongol, and Uyghur ethnic groups.”
Mr. Tarricone saw a Shen Yun performance three years ago and came back for another round because of the beauty and excitement of the performance.
He said he learned a profound lesson from the performance. “The constant struggle between good and evil, and the constant struggle to get the rest of the world in line with what everyone should be, is free to express themselves as they see fit,” Mr. Tarricone said before adding, “I highly recommend it!”
Reporting by NTD Television and Zack Stieber.
New York-based Shen Yun has three companies touring the world. Shen Yun Performing Arts Touring Company will perform at New York’s Lincoln Center through Jan. 15.
For more information, visit ShenYunPerformingArts.org.
