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Mrs. Liz Fitchett Tillotson owns JovoDance, a dance studio located in Langhorne Pa., together with Scott Jovovich, an award-winning Broadway dancer in New York. The couple’s daughter, Ms. Priscilla Tillotson, 21, has been dancing since she could walk.
Speaking of the precision and stamina displayed by the Shen Yun dancers, Mrs. Tillotson, who has been teaching, coaching, and choreographing for over 22 years, said, “I don’t think I have ever seen it done so well on stage.”
“What they are doing is absolutely beautiful and incredible,” she said.
“The steps are incredibly difficult—a dancer understands that.” When the dancers land from a jump, they hit the mark without any extra movement, and they are not fatigued, she said. “They look like they didn’t even start dancing yet.”
Chinese classical dance features a wide range of unique postures, technical movements, and difficult tumbling techniques. It is the most comprehensive dance system in the world.
“They make something that is extremely difficult look very easy. They make it appear to the audience as if the audience could get up and do what they are doing. It’s so beautifully done,” Mrs. Tillotson said.
‘A Great Gift’
Ms. Tillotson agreed with her mother, calling the difficult execution of the dance movements “just awesome.” “The females do everything the males do, which is awesome,” the young dancer said.
According to the Shen Yun program book, “Of all the traditional Chinese arts, classical Chinese dance is best able to bring to life the richness and depth of an ancient culture.”
Mrs. Tillotson observed that in China, different regions have different styles of dance, all relating to their culture. “I’m very impressed! I was often speechless while watching. The colors are amazing,” she said.
“I appreciate the work they are doing because that’s not easy. The colors, the staging, their special effects are incredible.”
She said it was their first experience to see Shen Yun, which was “a great gift to us from my brother and sister-in-law because it has opened up a whole new world for us.” She said that if she had the opportunity, she would definitely bring all of their dance students to see the show.
Mr. Jovovich was busy teaching and was unable to attend the performance with his family.
Reporting by Sherry Dong and Andrea Hayley.
New York-based Shen Yun Performing Arts has three touring companies that perform simultaneously around the world. For more information, visit ShenYunPerformingArts.org
