“It was not what I expected—it was more,” said Richard, who attended a performance at Lincoln Center on March 8, 2020, with his wife Dolores.

The couple added that they only wished they'd brought their grandchildren with them.

“It was marvelous. The colors were fabulous. The acting was superb,” said Dolores. “I’m planning on taking my grandchildren next year.”

“I would take them in a heartbeat,” Richard added. “They would love it.”

“The dancing was superb, okay, but the costumes were magnificent. They brought out the meanings as the young ladies or men too wrapped their long sleeves around their arms. I was taken back by it. They did not allow that to get mixed up into the act, and it kept them going. Unbelievable,” Richard said: “The movements of the legs, the stretching of the legs, bending over, just phenomenal. Phenomenal. Far more than what I expected. I’m leaving here floating on air.”

“It was fantastic. I loved it. I loved everything. The movements were sharp, precise, they swayed and then the screen in the back to absorb that was just unbelievable. I was taken back by it, I really was,” Richard said.

Traditional Chinese culture is said to be divinely inspired, and for thousands of years revolved around the concept of harmony between heaven, earth, and humankind. This idea permeates not just the narratives of Shen Yun’s storytelling dancing and the songs performed by bel canto artists, but in the costumes, use of color, and the dance form itself, as traditional Chinese culture is believed to have been imparted to humankind by the gods.

“The belief in God is a powerful thing, okay, and here we felt that God was there,” Richard said.

“He raised his voice and moved his body, you could feel the words, he was looking to reach out and talk to us,” Richard said.

“Anybody I see, I would recommend this to,” he said.