SACRAMENTO, Calif.— “Very touching. Ingenious!” said Robert Coleman, an educator after seeing Shen Yun Performing Arts at the Sacramento Community Center Theater on Friday Jan. 15.

Mr. Coleman said he had been waiting for some time to see the New York based Shen Yun. He was very happy that day had come. “It was awesome,” he said. “I thought all of it was excellent.”

Mr. Coleman was one of the thousands whose hearts have been touched by Shen Yun in Sacramento this year. Shen Yun performances are a rare treat and an opportunity to experience traditional Chinese culture.

According to the Shen Yun website, “Many of the tales and characters depicted in Shen Yun dances draw inspiration from ancient records and classics. Based on documented historical events, these stories give abstract ideas—like loyalty, filial piety, selflessness, and tolerance—a concrete form.”

Mr. Coleman appreciated the depiction of traditional Chinese culture and moral values. He said the performing arts is a way to bring people acceptance of different cultures.

He was really moved by dance about tolerance and forgiveness and the struggle between good and evil. “I thought that was very touching,” he said. “I thought that message was conveyed very eloquently and stunning at the same time.”

A solo performance featuring the erhu, a two-stringed Chinese instrument, often called the Chinese violin has a history of over 4,000 years, astounded Mr. Coleman.

He said, “That was beautiful, almost like a violin. It kind of reminds me of how it’s said to be like the human vocal chords; only two strings, but all the range of sounds that it could convey.”

“I was very impressed, … to actually see it live and to see somebody actually playing it I was very impressed.”

Likewise, the music of Shen Yun is in a class of its own; a unique orchestra combining Western and traditional Chinese instruments for a bold but soothing sound.

In the words of Mr. Coleman, this combination of live music with Chinese dance skills is striking.

He said, “I thought the dance was a beautiful blend of the elegant and acrobatic, then the costumes and the settings, the different stories and the music, the way it could tell how story fit the dance and vice versa. It was just a very beautifully done.”

Shen Yun is renowned for their state-of the art projected backdrops. Rather than using traditional physical backgrounds, dazzling landscapes and images are projected behind performers. The Shen Yun website describes them as “magical windows to completely different realms.” Combined with the coordinated dance and music, the audience is deeply immersed in this cultural experience.

Mr. Coleman said, “I thought that was very clever, very ingenious how they were able to blend the background with the dancers and the music so that everything really came together, very smooth.”

This was the first time Mr. Coleman had seen Shen Yun. He said it was fantastic and something everyone should see at least once in their life. He said he would strongly encourage everyone to see it. And once you have seen it you will want to see it again and take friends, family and children with you.

Reporting by Gary Wang and Miles Segni

New York-based Shen Yun Performing Arts has four touring companies that perform around the world. For more information, visit ShenYunPerformingArts.org.

Epoch Times considers Shen Yun Performing Arts the significant cultural event of our time. We have proudly covered audience reaction since Shen Yun’s inception in 2006.