LYON, France—From Feb. 4 to Feb. 9, the former silk capital of France is reconnecting with China, the origin of this precious fabric. The Shen Yun Performing Arts Global Company has put on its dancing shoes at the Amphitheatre 3000 in Lyon, playing every night to a full house.
This bubbly lawyer drew a comparison that is both very poetic and also timely of her feelings about the Shen Yun show:
“I think I can say that it would be great if all the laboratories would meet here to tap into the infinite beauty of Shen Yun to create a vaccine for all the ugliness in the world ... That would be great!” she said.
“The show is really fabulous! I feel like I’m three centimeters taller and my soul has risen. I had a wonderful time!”
Among the various dance vignettes, including story-based dances and ethnic and folk dances, Ms. Bonnin “really liked the classical women’s dance.”
“I thought the harmony was wonderful!” she said.
Having practiced classical dance herself when she was younger, the lawyer at the same time estimates the professional level of the dancers, “I am passionate about classical dance and therefore I could measure the difficulties of these dancers and their performances that are really prestigious.”
“These are values that should be universal, unfortunately, these are not always put forth,” said Ms. Bonnin. “But it’s good to say it again ... they are the values that make us more dignified, greater and ... they are lacking a little at the moment in our humanity.”
This piece particularly touched and moved Ms. Bonnin: “This is what I appreciate, because I am not at all in favor of dictatorships, it is obvious. So it was nice to see this [awareness of] this crime being committed, it’s quite touching.”
Ms. Bonnin was also moved by it: “There is a sacred dimension that touches us ... We can’t ignore it.”
“It is well presented too. The dance itself expresses it, but the presenters also invite us to share a little of this mission that they have, I believe,” she said. “Each one presents himself as having a mission in fact. So not to save humanity, of course, but in any case, to oppose a little the dictatorial regime of China ... And of this fact, there is a sacred dimension indeed that we perceive ... So I hope that this will make the spectators better.”
Ms. Bonnin said this was her first time seeing Shen Yun. “But I may come back next year, in two years, in three years ... because it’s something that is—it’s a gift.”
“It’s a gift to us. So is it a gift from heaven? It’s possible,” she said. “Either way, the dancers are well grounded, they are firmly anchored on earth.”
