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CLERMONT-FERRAND, France—Mireille Clery is a teacher and counselor, and has a passion for philosophy and spirituality. She was in the audience at the Maison de la Culture seeing the Shen Yun Performing Arts Touring Company’s premiere in Clermont-Ferrand on March 8.
Shen Yun was a real surprise for her. She hadn’t expected to see such an elaborate performance. “I have been very surprised. I was not expecting this. I was very happy, I had a wonderful night,” she said, visibly moved by the performance.
“At first, I thought it was a ballet, directly coming from actual China. After a while, I had a first impression of something beyond the materialistic life. I recognized a perspective and, of course, finally, I understood, [the performers] they were Chinese in exile.”
Ms. Clery was moved by the spiritual and artistic values displayed by Shen Yun. “I found it wonderful from a visual perspective, considering the beauty, the lightness. But most of all, I was impressed by something that was not visible, which reaches to the level of poetry, the level of the soul.”
On the artistic side of the show, Ms. Clery found the dancing “absolutely wonderful.”
“I particularly enjoyed the men dancing because of their vigor and the energy that carries the poetry. I also enjoyed the ladies grace.
“In another dance, where ladies come with those particular shoes, they have such a grace, altogether with spirit. An elegance with a touch of refinement, like if they were seeing themselves and were glancing at themselves. I really enjoyed this a lot; I would like to have that elegance.”
Ms. Clery was referring to the dance Manchurian Elegance, in which a group of Manchurian noblewomen prepare for the new day. Lasting into the twentieth century, the Manchu-ruled Qing dynasty had its own distinct customs and attire. The ladies decorous little steps display their dainty chopine shoes, according to the program.
Ms. Clery was also impressed by the music, saying, “Every time, I enjoyed the first notes, and at certain times, I could feel the music was carrying the dance, but dance got further than music in what I was able to absorb.”
“It's a discovery. I need to digest all these things I just saw. I need to assimilate all that happened,” she concluded.
Reporting by Hanna Szmytko.
Shen Yun Performing Arts Touring Company will give 10 performances in France. The company will perform one more show in Clermont-Ferrand on March 9, before moving to Paris for performances at the Palais des Congrès de Paris on March 11, 12 and 13, then performing at the Amphithéatre 3000 in Lyon on March 18, 19 and 20, and at Mérignac in Bordeaux on March 22.
For more information, visit ShenYunPerformingArts.org
