NEW YORK—Derek Wong and his brother attended Shen Yun Performing Arts’ Saturday performance at Lincoln Center’s David H. Koch Theater, and walked away with inspiration and appreciation for their Chinese heritage.
“I was born here in the United States, and the show was really, really interesting,” said Derek, who was clearly moved by the performance, as he took a moment to reflect.
“Watching it, I really … What’s that word? … It was more like respect and admiration. If they can really do that [perform at such a high level], I have a huge amount of respect for them. The coordination and the choreography—the CGI [computer generated imagery used as the backdrop] was directly in tune with the dancers, and the dancers were directly in tune with the orchestra. They just coordinated these three separate bodies so well, and it’s mind boggling how they did it.”
Derek said that the traditional Chinese values that were presented throughout the performance resonated with him.
As an American-born, ethnic Chinese, he felt a sadness when asked about present-day China after seeing the persecution of Falun Gong practitioners depicted in the dance number called The Choice.
“It’s kind of shaming,” he said. “I mean, Chinese culture spans back so many thousands of years and to see how China is now, it should be quite a shame.”
One dance number that especially struck Derek’s brother was a folk dance performed by the female dancers called Snowflakes Welcoming Spring.
“When they were throwing the snowflakes [handkerchiefs] and they had to catch them—I’m sure that’s not easy to do,” he said.
The take-away for the brothers after seeing Shen Yun is that it helped them reconnect with their heritage.
“Growing up here we kind of became Americanized so just seeing the old, traditional Chinese culture is kind of enlightening in a way, just getting back to our roots. So it was a good thing,” said Derek’s brother.
With reporting by Sound Of Hope Radio Network.
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, and again April 18-22.
For more information, visit ShenYunPerformingArts.org.
