ST. LOUIS—”Oh it’s beautiful. It takes me to another land. ” said Frank “Skip” Spielberg, a manufacturer of handbags, after seeing Shen Yun Performing arts at St. Louis’s Peabody Opera House on Friday evening, April 19.
“It just makes you think of ancient China and their traditions and how their dance is so beautiful,” he added. “Very nice.”
“For 5,000 years divine culture flourished in the land of China,” reads Shen Yun’s website. “Humanity’s treasure was nearly lost, but through breathtaking music and dance, Shen Yun is bringing back this glorious culture.
“It’s beautiful, it’s very beautiful, Everything the dancers are so light and on their feet and the music is just beautiful. It’s like a symphony,” his wife Elaine said.
“Shen Yun’s costume artists collect countless designs of traditional attire, ranging from those of emperors, ministers, and generals to the everyday clothing of the common people,” according to Shen Yun’s website. “They use bright colors to tailor and recreate hundreds of new pieces each season.”
Mr. Speilberg said he was also drawn by Shen Yun’s portrayal of China’s different cultures through the use of colorful costumes, which portray Han clothing to the ethnic attire of the Manchurian, Tibetan, Dai, Mongol, and Uyghur ethnic groups.
“I think it’s interesting that they are telling some of the their folk stories, you know that they are able to communicate folk stories,” he said.
Another aspect of the performance that was not lost upon Mr. Spielberg was the suppression of traditional Chinese culture by the communist regime for the past 60 years. He said the show relays an important message of hope amid hardship.
“Well, I think they were giving us a message that these people are being persecuted and make people aware of it, so it’s like discrimination,” he concluded.
With reporting by Michael Fitzgerald
New York-based Shen Yun Performing Arts has three touring companies that perform simultaneously around the world. For more information, visit ShenYunPerformingArts.org.
