WASHINGTON—Ms. Sara Berschet was fascinated by the Shen Yun performance, hosted at the Kennedy Center Opera House on Jan. 23.

“This is the first time I have seen this show and I loved it. I’ve never seen anything like this,” said the customer service director at Walter Reed-Army Medical Center.

“The Lotus Fairy was my favorite scene,” she said. I thought that was just absolutely beautiful, and I love the way it was presented. It looked like they were clouds. That was just totally awesome.”

According to the program guide, “In the East, the lotus has long been a symbol of purity and divine perfection.”

Shen Yun’s performance revives traditional Chinese culture. According to the Shen Yun website, it is “a study in grace, wisdom, and the virtues distilled from the five millennia of Chinese civilization.”

East-West

The New York-based Shen Yun also presents a new type of music, blending East and West to create a fresh and unexpected sound.

In addition to the Western instruments, such as percussion, woodwinds, and brass, are the Chinese pipa (Chinese lute), erhu (Chinese violin), and others.

Ms. Berschet was highly impressed with the sound of erhu soloist Xiaochun Qi. The erhu has only two strings, but it can convey a wide range of emotions.

Listening to the erhu was an “unbelievable experience. I mean, I’d never seen it before, but it was absolutely fantastic,” said Ms. Berschet.

“My first thought was that I have never heard this instrument played. But, when I heard it, I knew I’d heard it before. Yet, I’d never seen it being played, so that was just pretty exciting too.”

Ms. Berschet was equally impressed with the sopranos.

“The soloists were absolutely outstanding. I can’t imagine the years of training ... it’s powerful, truly very powerful.”

Reporting by NTD Television 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 ShenYunPerformingArts.org

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.