NEW YORK—Shen Yun Performing Arts graced the stage at Lincoln Center’s David H. Koch Theater on April 28, enchanting a full house audience with a revival of one of the world’s most ancient cultures.
Among the audience was Daniela Banz, senior marketing manager for FIFA, the Federation International of Football Association. Ms. Banz is based in Zürich, Switzerland.
The New York-based Shen Yun pleased Ms. Banz with its artistic presentation of the 5,000 year-old Chinese culture.
“It’s light but at the same time it has a lot of depth because of the history and the story behind it,” she said.
Shen Yun draws upon the vast lexicon of Chinese history to show the audience myths and legends from across different eras and dynasties, as well as transport the audience to different parts of China through different ethnic and folk dances.
Dances take audience members from the “vast open grasslands in one dance to the stately elegance of Tang Dynasty pavilions” and “from dusty yellow battlegrounds to tropical beaches to Himalayan peaks to picturesque scenery of the Yellow River Delta,” according to Shen Yun’s website.
Ms. Banz especially loved the Mongolian ethnic dance, during which female dancers depict Mongolian women emerging from tents balancing bowls on their heads, a tradition on the northern grasslands.
“Traditional Mongolian dance is strong yet gentle, with flexible wrists, pliable arms, and a signature shoulder shake,” says the Shen Yun program book. “Movements are relaxed but filled with an inner strength, and evoke images of geese in flight.”
Ms. Banz also said that she enjoyed the handmade costumes. “The dresses are fabulous,” she said.
Also at the performance enjoying the presentation on Saturday was Wendy Spelfogel, an attorney, with her son Michael, who is in high school.
Michael Spelfogel is studying Mandarin through a private tutor and has been learning for several years.
Mr. Spelfogel said he appreciated the cultural perspective and the movement through history.
“It was just interesting to see that there is a greater perspective of Chinese life other than what the communist government perpetrates and wants its citizens to believe,” he said.
Being based in New York gives Shen Yun artistic freedom to revive the ancient Chinese culture, according to Shen Yun’s website.
Reporting by Pamela Tsai, Joshua Philipp, and Ryan Jeffries
New York-based Shen Yun Performing Arts has three touring companies that perform simultaneously around the world. The next performances in the northeastern United States are in Philadelphia May 3-5. 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.
