FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla.—Gary Reid, a technical engineer, and his wife, Dr. Lydia Reid, who works in the field of speech pathology and genetics, came to see Shen Yun Performing Arts New York Company at the Broward Center on Jan. 3 to celebrate Chinese New Year.
The couple described the performance as “magnificent” and “fabulous.” “It was beautiful. I have never seen anything like this before,” Mrs. Reid said.
The Reids were impressed by the skill and beauty of the dancing. Both spoke of how they saw the dances as communication, a universal language where movement and music together tell stories.
“They spoke with their dance,” Mr. Reid said. “You didn’t have to know the language in order to understand what they were explaining,” Mrs. Reid added.
Mrs. Reid was particularly touched by the dance No Regrets. The scene opens to a contemporary Chinese village where a young man and his mother share some of life’s simpler joys. However, the man is set upon by the police for reading the book Zhuan Falun, the main text of the spiritual practice Falun Dafa. He falls victim to their violence, and his mother is left to grieve until the heavens open and a host of divine beings appear.
Mr. Reid was similarly impressed, saying it showed a view of the world where “divine intervention happens ... and that there are good people here that are willing to stand up against oppression.”
Mrs. Reid said that The Opening of Heaven’s Gate, a dance demonstrating the traditional Chinese concept that good is rewarded and evil meets with punishment, brought tears to her eyes. “It gave me such a very intimate feeling of justice and what it really means to hang in there and wait for that moment to come.”
Mr. Reid said it was magnificent that Shen Yun was traveling around the world showing the true traditional Chinese culture. He said he was “very surprised and very happy” the singers and dancers had the chance to express their messages.
Mrs. Reid took special note of how the music and dance worked together. “The music spoke to the performance. They complemented each other perfectly. They were so intertwined and a complement to one another. It was very beautiful!”
Shen Yun Performing Arts New York Company’s three-show run will conclude at the Broward Center on Friday, Feb. 4, followed by performances in Hartford, Conn., and Worcester and Boston, Mass. At the same time, Shen Yun’s two other touring companies will perform abroad, with upcoming shows in Auckland, New Zealand; Sydney, Australia; and Frankfurt, Germany.
Reporting by Jada Yeung.
For more information, please visit ShenYunPerformingArts.org
