BERLIN—Sunday night’s Shen Yun Performing Arts show was sold out, with every available place taken in the Jahrhunderthalle of the Stage Theater am Potsdamer Platz. This venue with its 1,800 seats is one of the largest theaters in Germany. The theater opened its doors in 1999, in the place of the former Berlin Wall.
Mr. Michael von Hohenstein who is involved in the publishing industry and owner of a publishing firm, which produces for example history and schoolbooks, had bought a ticket for the Shen Yun opening show. He shared that the choreography, costumes and the dance performances were of high caliber.
He said, “I still have the sound of the music in my ears and it is stored in my head. It sounded to me that the music has European and Asian influences.”
Another member of the audience was Ms. Ly Huyen, owner of Soul Flight, a Berlin School of Pole Dance. The Shen Yun show brought her closer to Chinese culture, which is a good thing in her mind. She also became more aware of the persecution of the spiritual practice Falun Gong, also something of importance.
She said, “I enjoyed the dances. As a matter of fact, I enjoyed the entire performance and I was inspired by the dancers. They displayed softness and during the dance performances I felt positive energy emanating from the stage.”
The family Swiatek lives quite a distance from Berlin, which didn’t stop them to drive the three hours to see the Shen Yun performance. Daughter Anita is a concertmaster, a word derived from the German Konzermeister. This is the second-most significant position in a music ensemble or orchestra and the person is the principle first violinist in a symphony orchestra. This person often is also the assistant to the conductor.
Daughter Anita said, “I was very impressed by the orchestra. It was different from what I’m used to and very harmonic. Furthermore, the dancers displayed excellent coordination.”
She continued, “Shen Yun is incredibly calming and comforting. What an achievement! There is so much training involved, and only those that are involved in the world of music can understand it. However, such a performance is not possible by training alone. There has to be something divine that is supporting these performers.
Ms. Marianne Zohlke plays the cello in an orchestra and has a deep understanding of music. She has seen the Shen Yun performance in 2010 and wanted to assure that in 2014 she would see how the performance has changed since that year.
She said about the music, “It is light and lovely like a flower. Yes, like a flower. She opens, presents itself and leaves the world. But, this flower lives on, truly lives on.”
A group of friends wanted to see the Shen Yun performance, with Ms. Barbara Wendt having come all the way from Hamburg, a more than one hour trip. She said that she is a former classical singer and gave performances in Munich.
She said “The songs were great and carried a spiritual undertone.”
Reporting by German Epoch Times and Heide B. Malhotra
New York-based Shen Yun Performing Arts has four touring companies that perform simultaneously around the world. For more information, visit Shen Yun Performing Arts.
The Epoch Times considers Shen Yun Performing Arts the significant cultural event of our time. We have proudly covered audience reactions since Shen Yun’s inception in 2006
