INDIANAPOLIS—Puananinenehiwa (or Pua for short) Kauwe enjoyed seeing the ethnic dances in Shen Yun Performing Arts at Clowes Memorial Hall of Butler University. “Glad to see the people hanging on to their ethnicity,” she said, after intermission on Feb. 5.
Ms. Kauwe saw New York-based Shen Yun, a company devoted to reviving the traditional civilization that is the essence of China’s 5,000 years of culture. As the world’s premier dance and music company, Shen Yun specializes in both classical Chinese dance but also presents ethnic and folk dances taken from the more than 50 ethnicities in the country.
After spending last year in China, Ms. Kauwe, a model, asked her fiancée to bring her to Shen Yun: “I told him you got to take me … to this because … I did some research and I was wanting to compare it to what I saw in China, and I think it’s absolutely wonderful.”
Ms. Kauwe became familiar with Chinese instruments while in China, so she was especially thrilled to hear instruments like the pipa and erhu, adding a distinctive Chinese flavor to the orchestra with a foundation of Western instruments.
“There is no comparison at all,” she said, referring to what she heard in China and what she witnessed on stage. She was so impressed by the talent she saw. “I am just thrilled,” she said.
She told The Epoch Times that she would happily drag all her friends to see the performance.
Terribly grateful to the Shen Yun performers, she said, “I am just tickled, tickled pink. I love it.”
Reporting by Valerie Avore and Sharon Kilarski.
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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