NEW YORK—This year was the second time that Hon. Gregory P. Peterson, Commissioner of the New York State Board of Elections and law firm partner, and his wife Patricia have seen Shen Yun Performing Arts.
The first time was around five years ago, and after finally being reacquainted with the performance, the couple praised the production.
“Wonderful! Beautiful performance,” Mr. Paterson said.
“And they were expert dancers, the story itself is very intriguing.”
“I thoroughly enjoyed the show,” said Mrs. Paterson.
The couple attended the performance at Lincoln Center, New York, on March 16. The classical Chinese dance company is currently touring the world bringing 5,000 years of Chinese culture and history onto the stage for modern audiences.
The performance consists of about 20 self-contained segments, which include classical Chinese dance or ethnic dance vignettes, stories told through dance, and musical soloists.
“The dancers are phenomenal. The music is extraordinary,” she said.
Each music piece played by Shen Yun’s live orchestra was composed specifically for the performance, and is refreshed each year. The music is unique because it includes sounds from both Chinese and Western instruments, merging the best qualities from both musical traditions.
Mr. Peterson, who has held public office for many years including previously as Councilman and also Supervisor of the Town of Hempstead, Long Island, said he saw a deep spirituality shine through the performance.
“It’s very moving, it’s happy, but there is a great sense of spirituality,” he said.
The production took Mr. Paterson through 5,000 years of Chinese civilization, allowing him to see how it has developed all the way to modern times, when the traditional culture has been suppressed by the communist regime.
“They yearn for that kind of freedom and expression, freedom to be able to enjoy the philosophy of living, which is what this is all about. It’s good,” Mr. Peterson said.
In addition to stories from ancient China, Shen Yun depicts scenes based on true events taking place in China concerning the persecution of Falun Gong practitioners. Falun Gong, also known as Falun Dafa, is a spiritual practice involving meditation exercises and a set of teachings based on the principles of Truthfulness, Compassion, and Tolerance.The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) banned the discipline in 1999 after its immense popularity saw an estimated 70 to 100 million people practicing in China. As a result of the crackdown, many practitioners have been sent to prison, tortured, or even killed for their faith.
Mr. Paterson said it was intimidating to see the protestors as they arrived to the theater, adding that he was glad the emcees explained that the protesters were sent by the CCP during the performance.
“If they want to protest that much, and they feel that the freedom here isn’t appropriate, [then] the communists that are here should go back ... to communist China,” he said.
With reporting by Wei Yong.