AUSTIN, Texas—Shen Yun Performing Arts’ last show in Austin was a phenomenal experience for William and Joyce Batty, a retired couple who took in the Friday night performance at The Long Center.
“We loved it. It was wonderful, extremely wonderful,” Mr. Batty, a retired private investor, said. “It looked like the cast enjoyed what they were doing. It looked like they were having fun and enjoyed putting on the show.”
Mrs. Batty said she loved the vibrant colors and elaborate details in the costumes as well as the variety of costumes throughout the show.
Mr. Batty agreed, declaring: “The ladies’ costumes were out of this world.”
The New York-based company’s mission is to revive 5,000 years of Chinese civilization, and as such the costumes span through the many years and regions of China.
Mrs. Batty said she appreciated that the show was not just artistic but also educational, pointing to how the emcees explained that the difficult leaps, flips, and tumbling techniques the audience saw originated from classical Chinese dance, and were adapted into gymnastics and acrobatics well afterwards.
“I thought they were superb, the coordination and the timing and the beauty of it. It looked like it was perfect,” Mr. Batty said of the dancers.
The couple was blown away by the way all the elements of the show, including all of the traditional Chinese arts Shen Yun presented, melded.
“I was amazed by the effort that has to go into choreography, and just the management of the whole program to make it all fit together. Tremendous. Somebody did a great job on that,” Mr. Batty said with a laugh.
Mrs. Batty thought the same of the orchestra, which she said was phenomenal.
“Everything just blended into just an artistic experience,” she said.
The Shen Yun orchestra is composed of a mix of classical western and classical Chinese instruments, like the bamboo flute and two-stringed erhu.
The traditional Chinese dances in the performance often told of ancient folk stories and fairy tales, which Mrs. Batty said she enjoyed because they added a new dimension and variety to the program.
Mr. Batty said he noted the aspect of spirituality throughout the stories, as the spiritual and divine are embedded into traditional Chinese culture and values.
“I enjoyed [Shen Yun] because it was of the Chinese perspective,” Mrs. Batty said of the culture Shen Yun presented, “and it demonstrated hope for all the world, I felt.”
Mrs. Batty said Shen Yun was a performance that held her interest and kept her enthused the entire show.
“Never a dull moment,” Mr. Batty said in accord with his spouse.
Mrs. Batty added that every time a character popped on stage from the digital backdrops, Mr. Batty nudged her in the performance.
“I liked the effect,” Mr. Batty said. “That was outstanding.”
Shen Yun’s digital backdrop projects vibrant scenes from China’s different regions, heavenly scenes, and mythical landscapes.
“It was beautiful. And I liked the little animated touches—very subtle sometimes—because the scenery came alive,” Mrs. Batty said.
Shen Yun has three companies touring the world. Shen Yun Performing Arts New York Company will next perform in San Francisco from Jan. 3 to 8.
For more information, visit ShenYunPerformingArts.org
The Epoch Times is a proud sponsor of Shen Yun Performing Arts
