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Shen Yun, based in New York, was lauded that evening for its colourful and exhilarating performance that drew standing ovations and an encore from celebrated tenor Guan Guimin. While the full-house theatre clapped, cheered and whistled, the artists and orchestra bowed and waved graciously through three curtain calls.
“I thought the choreography was amazing,” said Ms. Kingsland, speaking stories portrayed by exquisitely attired dancers perfectly complemented by high tech projected backdrop scenes and a full orchestra.
At the core of Shen Yun’s performances is a reawakening of China’s divinely-inspired traditional culture in classical Chinese dance and music.
Ms. Kingsland said she loved the Plum Blossom dance, portraying the survival of the delicate pink flowers which look even more beautiful against the harsh winter snow. And a dance named Cloud Maidens of fairies tucked among the fluffy white clouds drifting along with the breeze.
“The other one that what really blew me away, was the ladies with the hats, [My Beloved Yi Village]. It is just so elegant but the choreography is magnificent because a lot of the time those movements are quite simple,” Ms. Kingsland said. “The choreography is so stunning that you are completely thrown, because you can’t keep up and you keep on seeing new shapes and wonderful things … it was great.”
She was also impressed with the Shen Yun Orchestra’s ground-breaking fusion of Chinese and Western instrumentals. “The music was absolutely fine, it just supported, they complement—the dancing is so beguiling you get more and more into it. At first I thought, ‘oh this isn’t Chinese robots that you usually see, not these people who have been drilled from birth to do this,'” she said.
“Because the choreography, the story, the costumes and the whole design and things, is so clever I was amazed. The women are so graceful. Wouldn’t it be lovely to be able to move like that?”
Ms. Kingsland likened the entire production to a sandwich.
“The modern ones are hard-hitting and then it was surrounded by all this stuff, like a positive sandwich, and then also a lot of it was subtle, so sweet, clever talking about Buddhism. It is not preaching, but a normal part of life—and they were little boys, [Little Mischievous Monks].
“I wanted everyone in the audience to understand that the sweetness was not superficiality, but sort of rising above and deep and beyond,” she said. “You get quite enchanted with it. … I thought it worked, pulling the emotions. It was lots of fun.”
Reporting by Shar Adams and Raiatea Tahana-Reese.
Shen Yun Performing Arts International Company continues its 2011 World Tour to Taiwan. For more information, visit ShenYunPerformingArts.org
