Watana Wanasawage, president of the Thai Restaurant Association of Australia, was also in the audience on Wednesday.
“An excellent performance,” he said. “Very well performed.”
Several dances caught Mr. Wanasawage’s attention, including How the Monkey King Came to Be and Lotus Leaves. The first renacts the beginning of the classic Chinese tale, the Monkey King, while Lotus Leaves depicts lotus maidens, “delicate yet playful,” dancing atop the waters, according to Shen Yun’s program book. “The dancers’ unique full-circle fans sway like lily pads in the wind, evoking scenes of a flowering lotus garden in the summertime.”
Another dance that Mr. Wanasawage commented on, The Choice, shows the current persecution of the peaceful spiritual practice Falun Gong, also known as Falun Dafa, and how the persecution presents every person in society a choice.
Even though Shen Yun is a performance of classical Chinese dance and music, the show cannot be seen in today’s China, where the Communist Party has worked for decades to destroy traditional culture.
“Now is the 21st century, we shouldn’t have something [like this happening now],” said Mr. Wanasawage. “We should [be able to] have our voice to say something freely.”
Reporting by Christine Hong and Zachary Stieber.
Shen Yun Performing Arts, based in New York, has three touring companies that perform simultaneously around the world, with a mission to revive traditional Chinese culture. Shen Yun Performing Arts New York Company will perform at Sydney’s Capitol Theatre through May 6.
For more information visit ShenYunPerformingArts.org
[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o3WTKCEA4tE[/video]
Friends Read Free