WELLINGTON, New Zealand—Wayne Goodfellow said he would “definitely” recommend Shen Yun Performing Arts to his friends after catching the final of five sold-out shows in the city this year.
“If you want to see something very, very different and something really cultural, I’d recommend you come along,” he said on April 16.
“I love the show ... I thought the dancing and their acting was magnificent,” he said. “Magnificent job.”
Mr. Goodfellow said he “really enjoyed the stories.” He said he became “very emotional” watching one of the story-based performances.
“The music was fantastic,” he said, adding that he felt impressed by the synchronisation between the dancers and the orchestra.
“I did feel that the composer [was] doing amazing work and also watching the dancers with such passion and such flair. I thought I'd been star-struck.”
‘The World is Going to Heal and Be Made Well Again’
Helen Platford, a primary school teacher, felt Shen Yun’s overall message was one of “hope.”“The world is going to heal and be made well again,” she said.
“The world is full of creativity,” Ms. Platford said. “Divinity and creativity and life, that’s what is important. To be creative, you must have this spirit. This divine spirit.”
Ms. Platford expressed she was thoroughly impressed by the digital backdrop, the live orchestra, and the all-handmade costumes. Platford noted how Shen Yun is also “very contemporary,” noting how some dancers portray “what’s happening in China at the moment.”
“That was quite interesting ... I am very cognizant of what’s happening over there so I’m finding [the performance] very interesting,” she said.Shen Yun cannot be seen in China today, and there is no other performance like it in China today. This is because of the Chinese Communist Party’s systematic attempts to extinguish true Chinese culture, which runs contrary to Shen Yun’s mission. It is also because Shen Yun seeks to portray modern-day persecution on stage.
“I feel very compassionate and very ... I thought I saw something about organ harvesting ... I’ve heard, but it’s the first time I’ve seen it [performed on stage]. I thought: ‘ah, did I actually see that? I did,” she said. “That surprised me. It actually shocked me.”
Ms. Platford described Shen Yun’s performers as “brave, wonderful, strong, creative beautiful people.”
