RAPID CITY, S.D.—Company executive Michael Murad attended Shen Yun Performing Arts for the first time on April 17 at The Monument.
He thought the show was “a very good, beautiful mixture of the old and the new, with the technology and the multimedia but also the classical dance and traditional Chinese culture.”
“I enjoyed the show very much. I’m glad that they came to Rapid City and it’s wonderful having them here. I loved it,” he said, adding that he especially adored the piece where the dancers’ long sleeves billowed and flowed like the gentle movement of water on stage.
According to the company’s website, these sleeves were a part of ancient Chinese feminine attire representing humility and grace.
For 5,000 years, the teachings of Buddhism, Daoism, and Confucianism were indelible parts of Chinese people’s everyday lives.
This aspect of the performance deeply moved Mr. Murad and he thought the three traditional values introduced by the dancers—truthfulness, compassion, and forbearance were “very, very important.”
However, Shen Yun is currently forbidden by the Chinese Communist Party from performing in China.
“It’s not surprising because I’ve heard it from other sources, but it’s very unfortunate, very troubling. It’s good to get the word out about that so people can somehow help in some way.”
He thought the whole performance was “very positive” and “very engaging.”
