CALGARY, Alberta—Ms. Laing, the director and owner of a dance academy near Calgary, was treated by some of her dance students to see the Shen Yun Performing Arts show at the Southern Alberta Jubilee Auditorium on Easter Sunday afternoon. It was a gift she was glad to receive.
“Ten out of ten—I think it’s fabulous. It’s a great way to spend Easter,” she responded when asked what she thought of the show.
Ms. Laing has danced for over 30 years and now teaches a variety of dance forms including ballet, musical theatre, lyrical, highland, and tap. She has also performed on television, in theatre productions, and in Disneyland. She holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree in Drama from the University of Calgary.
“I brought my husband, and he has never seen anything like this before either, so it was nice. I have been dancing since I was three, so that’s a long time.”
With her background in dance, Ms. Laing said she noticed some distinct differences in Chinese dance.
“One of the things I really like is how they walk. I like their heel-toe walking, and it just looks like they are floating. I really like that.
“The precision is amazing,” she said, adding that she enjoyed the colours of the performance as well, and how they contributed to the story telling.
She said the story-telling aspect of the dance was something she particularly enjoyed and something not as present in the Scottish and Highland dancing she teaches.
“I like dancing that tells stories. I teach Scottish dancing too. This cultural dancing is just a little bit different, because it’s mostly focused on the stories.”
Ms. Laing said that strength of the male dancers and precision of the female dancers both impressed her, and that she loved the Chinese cultural traditions carried in the dances, including details like hand gestures.
“I absolutely love tradition. It’s very valuable. In this age, it needs to be promoted more, and I am really, really glad that the show came to Calgary. I think it’s wonderful. I wish more of my dancers can come to see this.”
Shen Yun travels with its own symphony orchestra, a unique ensemble in that it combines the rich, full sound of a Western orchestra with traditional Chinese instruments and melodies. Ms. Laing said the music added another dimension to the performance.
“I like the dynamics of having a live orchestra because it just brings out the richness of the movements, and it’s married and it blends [with the movements]. The dancers have the same kind of energy that the orchestra was portraying, and that was very nice to see.”
She added that she loved Drummers of the Tang Court, a dance in which male dancers thunder across the stage with Tang drums. The Tang Dynasty was one of China’s most prosperous eras.
Ms. Laing’s student, Haleigh, who does Highland dancing, said she also loved that performance. “I think that all the moves are really clean, and I like all the colours,” she said.
The dance instructor said that another of her favourite programs was Flowing Sleeves, where the female dancers took to the stage draped in long, flowing, silken sleeves reminiscent of the women of the Tang court.
“I also like the dance after that where the men had the long sleeves, and the sleeves would actually hit when the orchestra was like, ‘Boom, Chee,’” she said, imitating the sounds of the orchestral percussion that accompanied Dance of the Snow-Capped Mountain.
She said that what impressed her most were the dancers theatrical abilities.
“I love the performers’ faces. I like how animated they were when they were telling a story. ... I am always telling my dancers to dance from their heart, dance from your heart, show me how you love to dance, and I totally felt that. I was sitting in the third row from the front, and I can see every little intricacy of their eyebrows and just how detailed every part of their body was while they are performing, and I love to see it.”
She said she would “absolutely” recommend the show.
With reporting by NTDTV
Shen Yun is expected to reach a live audience of 800,000. After its three-show run in Calgary, Shen Yun will play in Edmonton on April 15 to April 16 and in Regina on April 19.
The Epoch Times is a proud sponsor of the Shen Yun Performing Arts 2009 World Tour. For more information please visit ShenYunPerformingArts.org
