SAN FRANCISCO—Spring-like weather and a near full moon set the mood for a spectacular evening for Shen Yun Performing Arts’ Saturday night performance at the War Memorial Opera House, in San Francisco. Terry Patten, teacher, writer and coach, and his wife, Deborah Boyer, a consultant, had never seen classical Chinese dance before.
Mr. Patten said, “It is obviously very refined and I think that it is beautiful and I am enjoying it.”
It was through the senses that Ms. Boyer experienced Shen Yun. She said: “I really feel this kind of contemplative, meditative, transmission from the musicians and the performers.” Adding: “I am really appreciating how calm and relaxing this is, but also exciting with it’s own rhythms; it feels healthy, not exaggerated.”
Inspired by 5,000 years of traditional Chinese culture, the animated backdrops caught Ms. Boyer’s attention. “I like how the dancers move in and out of them. That is a nice touch,” she said.
Ms. Boyer was curious about a couple of performances depicting the courage of Falun Gong practitioners in China, which is a cultivation practice based on the principles of truthfulness, compassion, and tolerance. She said: “I wish I understood more about what was happening with Falun Gong.” She felt the performances showed her that people’s values cannot be destroyed. “[To] create beauty out of something ugly that happened, that is a beautiful thing.”
Ms. Boyer said, “I really like the fabrics. Like that lotus, it just felt like leaves, when they were twirling. I thought it was beautiful.”
Overall, she described Shen Yun as “magical, and like another world,” saying it is “very special.”
Reporting by Gary Wang and Laurie Gorham.
Shen Yun’s New York Company will continue on to Costa Mesa and then Los Angeles, starting January 11. Shen Yun Performing Arts has three touring companies that perform simultaneously around the world. For more information, visit ShenYunPerformingArts.org.
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