SEOUL, South Korea–On the evening of April 15, the New York-based Shen Yun Performing Arts Touring Company presented the premiere of its fifth leg in South Korea at Seoul’s Sangmyung Art Center. Marveling at the splendid performance, well-known South Korean filmmaker Kang Hye-jung excitedly expressed that the show was full of novelties, and it has helped her gain more insight into the Chinese culture.
After Shen Yun performed in Seoul for the first time four years ago, many people in the capital city had longed to see the magnificent Shen Yun again. Attracted by Shen Yun’s popularity, all the tickets for this premiere in 2013 were sold out, and the Sangmyung Art Center was packed. Among the audience was famous Korean filmmaker Kang Hye-jung.
According to Shen Yun Performing Arts’ website, Shen Yun weaves a wondrous tapestry of heavenly realms, ancient legends and modern heroic tales, taking the audience on a journey through 5,000 years of Chinese culture. Its stunning beauty and tremendous energy leave audiences uplifted and inspired.
Kang Hye-jung exclaimed, “I have never seen this kind of show, and this is my very first time to see the performance with China content. The overall performances are very creative. It [Shen Yun] illustrates Chinese culture with different approaches. I feel it is very refreshing, and it did help me gain an all-new understating of China.”
Before leaving the performance hall, she added, “In terms of my impressions of Chinese performances, I had only seen some ordinary shows, such as acrobatics, etc. I’ve heard of the Shaolin Temple, and seen some movies relating to the temple. This is my very first time seeing this kind of performance. It is great to include classical Chinese legendary stories to the program. It is very creative. I will definitely bring my kids to see the performance.”
‘This is what true art is’
Local leaders in politics and entertainment had all come out to savour the world’s premier performance that had been missing in the South Korean capital for the past four years, filling every seat on the opening night at Sangmyung Art Center.
Han Hak Soo, a counselor on the education committee of Seoul Metropolitan Council, excitedly said, “It was a huge success. Anyone who misses out on the performance will regret it for the rest of their lives.”
In the two-hour performance, Shen Yun brought to life 5,000 years of traditional Chinese culture, with dances that built on traditional aesthetics, an orchestra that produced a refreshing sound with a unique combination of Chinese music and Western symphony orchestra, and an animated backdrop that extended the time and space of the stage. Everyone in the audience was enjoying every minute of the performance, as every program drew non-stop thunderous applause.
After seeing Shen Yun, Mr. Han had this to say to express his excitement, “Shen Yun, in a word, just brings out people’s pure and true emotion.”
Mr. Han said he had traveled to many countries, seeing different traditional dances that were representative of their countries. Once he saw Yang Guifei dance and other traditional dances in China. However, none had come close to a performance like Shen Yun; it was simply an eye-opener for Mr. Han.
Mr. Han said: “Whether it was the choreography, the dancing, the design, the overall performance, the orchestra, the coordination between the Eastern and Western instruments and the performers, every single one of these was perfect and amazing. This is what true art is.”
Wanting to make his point emphatically clear, Mr. Han again said, “The performance was a resounding success. Anyone who misses it will regret it for the rest of their lives.” He added poetically, “It was a touching and beautiful performance. I will treasure this precious memory for the rest of my life.”
Read the original Chinese articles. [1] [2]
Reporting by Choi Jung-eun and Bill Xu, Lee Jinhan and Frank Fang,
New York-based Shen Yun Performing Arts has three touring companies that perform simultaneously around the world. For more information, visit ShenYunPerformingArts.org.
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