Pushpa Prasad, president of the New Zealand Federation of Multicultural Councils, was one of those audience members, who said she felt her body hair stand-on-end while watching the opening scene where countless divine beings were seen travelling down to the earth with the Creator.

“I [felt] myself flying up in the air in the atmosphere, and was trying to feel that,” Mrs. Prasad said.

“5000 years ago, things were very different because people believed in the Divine being, and they were making connections with them before anything else happened,” Mrs. Prasad said.

“Just look at one thing and not think of wider things, and not be connected to the actual earth and actual divine being.”

“I’m a very spiritual person so everything touches my heart very quickly and easily,” Mrs. Prasad said. “And of course I will always think about [Shen Yun] and remember how nicely this was presented.”

“[S]ociety is going to learn and hopefully they will try to put something together so that we can tell our government to put the pressure [on the Chinese Communist Party],” he said.

“I think whatever is happening in China, I think people should be aware of it and we should condemn what is happening. We all should be united to condemn what’s happening in China.”

“They were really amazing, especially because it is really hard, because of this very large scape, to create this illusion because the eye easily sees you—you know pixilated things,” Mr. Macher said.

“I was really amazed by the synchronicity between the actors, the music and how the actors popped in and out and how they were integrated in the whole storytelling. Very creative really.”

It was the dance, called “Water Sleeves” that created a memorable experience for Mr. Macher.

“[The dancers] played with this cloth. It felt so fluid, very fluid like water and plants together, all these wavy structures and how they formed and dispersed and came together—wow, amazing!” Mr. Macher said.

Mr. Macher could not believe that the erhu had only two strings.

“Just so amazing. I wonder how long … this artist, took to achieve this mastery? It is just beyond my imagination,” he said.

Through watching Shen Yun, Mr. Macher gained a new perspective on contemporary Chinese culture.

He said he believed that Shen Yun had been founded in order “to raise their voice against something that is not right,” that is, the persecution of Falun Dafa, a spiritual practice that is based on the principles of Truthfulness, Compassion, and Tolerance.

“But, at the same time [there was] a very universal message, that we are all divine creatures … there is nothing that should divide us. There is beauty in everything, and we can emulate this,” Mr. Macher said.

The performers were divinely inspired, he said.

“And amazingly talented, highly dedicated. I think this is a very closely-knit family … because otherwise you just couldn’t have this synchronicity. I think, they almost read [each others’] minds. It is just one integrated body,” he said.

Mr. Macher left a message for Shen Yun’s Artistic Director.

Ms. Livesay sang for 40 years, competing in prestigious competitions in the United States and reached the finals in the auditions to the Metropolitan Opera.

Ms. Livesay recognized the challenging nature of this technique, which is used for singing in the upper register.

“They were just spectacular, beautiful … such talented dancers. And the costuming was just out of this world … ,” Ms. Livesay said.

The performance was “triumphant” that left a message of hope, she said.

“I’m very glad I came, and I feel hopeful for the future of Communist China and that [the Communist Party] will be overthrown by the goodness of [Shen Yun],” she said.