TORONTO—Shen Yun Performing Arts was deeply moving for composer Igor Vrabac Saturday night.
“I feel enlightened and touched. It was beautiful. They’re very well rehearsed I would say. And they’re tight as an ensemble, the dancers, and the orchestra.
“I had tears in my eyes a few times,” he said after watching Shen Yun’s presentation of classical Chinese dance and music at Sony Centre for the Performing Arts.
Mr. Vrabac is an an established composer working largely in film and television. His extensive list of composer credits includes TV shows Mutant-X, YTV’s Freaky Stories, the film Long Journey Home, and dozens of other films, television shows, commercials, and stage performances.
“Just the beauty of it ... the honesty and sincerity of it—it was touching,” said Mr. Vrabac.
He said Shen Yun offered deeper insight into the culture of his Chinese wife, marketing professional Donna Hui.
“It’s gorgeous. It’s beautiful colours. They’re very fluid, very elegant,” said Ms. Hui, who went on to praise Shen Yun’s choreography.
“They covered the stage really well, so no matter where you sat, they were really engaging with the audience.
“Quite animated as well. So it wasn’t just dancing it was also performing, the gestures on their faces, everything to the movement of their fingertips—it was really beautiful.”
The movements of classical Chinese dance are rich in their ability to express a variety of feelings, as explained on the Shen Yun website, and a dance acting element is involved in performing theatrical dance, which involves coordinating facial expression with physical movement.
For Mr. Vrabac, he said that he didn’t analyze the music that night, just listened to it and enjoyed it.
“It’s beautiful,” said Mr. Vrabac. “I enjoyed it—I loved it.”
With reporting by Teng Dongyu
New York-based Shen Yun Performing Arts has four touring companies that perform simultaneously around the world. Shen Yun’s World Company will perform in Toronto until Jan. 26. 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.
