“Shen Yun artists presented the traditional Chinese people’s respect for Gods and Buddhas. This is the real divine culture,” he said. “Current China doesn’t believe in divine beings after the Great Cultural Revolution … I saw the enormous difference between these two Chinas.”
“All Shen Yun’s aspects, including the costumes, deliver the values of traditional culture,” he said. “I wish Shen Yun can keep on performing and can let the people see the real Chinese culture.”
“The live orchestra is magnificent. The conductor can’t be seen by us because he was inside the orchestra pit, but he led the musicians to play the music perfectly matching the dance,” he said. “I can’t imagine how hard they practiced to reach this achievement. It’s fabulous. This is a very high-end orchestra.”
‘Shen Yun Is the Best of Best’
“When the curtain was opened, the scene was brilliant. I was very moved. It’s too beautiful,” said Mr. Umemura Takeshi, the president of a foreign candidates’ recruiting firm. “Shen Yun is the best of the best.”“The male dancers are masculine and valiant. The female dancers are elegant and graceful. The beauty of the dances is breathtaking,” he said. “All dancers are very flexible. Their expressions are charming and serious. They are really very professional.”
Mr. Umemura then gave an example, the male dancers’ Tibetan ethnic dance.
“The movements are very powerful and influential. I was excited and inspired by it. I felt the profound meaning of the oriental culture,” he said.
For 5,000 years China’s civilization was built on values and virtues from the spiritual teachings of Buddhism, Taoism, and Confucianism, virtues like loyalty, propriety, wisdom, justice, and benevolence—values that are universal and shared the world over.
Mr. Umemura appreciated Shen Yun’s effort to revive the traditional culture, which he said was encouraging.
‘Shen Yun Made My New Year’
“I was very sad because of the pandemic and the unclear and gloomy future. Now I’ve obtained hope. Shen Yun made my new year!” said Mr. Sakakibara Shigeru, the president of a disaster prevention equipment company.Mr. Sakakibara said he felt blessed to attend Shen Yun, and was especially moved by the musical solos.
This is Mr. Sakakibara’s second experience with Shen Yun. He said he was looking forward to Shen Yun after attending three years ago. Every year, Shen Yun has an all-new production. However, Shen Yun didn’t visit Japan in the past few years due to the pandemic.
“Shen Yun is spectacular! I hope I can attend Shen Yun next year!” he said.
In the 2023 season, Shen Yun has eight equally sized touring companies set to visit more than 180 cities across five continents. It is expected that over 1 million audience members will see Shen Yun this season.
