MESA, Ariz.—The Saturday matinee of Shen Yun Performing Arts drew a culture aficionados to the Ikeda Theater in the Mesa Arts Center, including Dr. Tom Johnson and his mother, Anna.
“I thought it was excellent,” said Dr. Johnson, a professor of clinical ophthalmology at the University of Miami, which is rated by U.S. News & World Report as the number one hospital for ophthalmology in the United States.
“The costumes, dancing, and sets were all very well done,” he said.
A Shen Yun performance consists of a number of short dance pieces set to music played by a full orchestra. A digital backdrop supports each piece.
“With state-of-the-art graphics technology, Shen Yun’s digital-backdrop team creates vividly animated settings, extending the stage and transporting the audience to a world where heaven and earth are one,” according to the Shen Yun website. The company is based in New York
Dr. Johnson’s mother said that the background particularly stood out, and her son agreed. “The background was really amazing in a lot of dances,” said Dr. Johnson.
He recounted the images of a variety of places throughout China and its vast history, including Tibet and Mongolia, calling them spectacular.
“The background of Mongolia was beautiful, too—the steppes of Mongolia. And of course the pagodas, cherry blossoms, and the scenery was very well done,” he said.
“I thought it was spectacular, just amazing,” said Dr. Johnson’s mother of the Shen Yun performance.
“Shen Yun’s mini-drama pieces draw upon stories and legends that span China’s history from the Yellow Emperor and through the Tang and Song dynasties and all the way to the modern day,” says the Shen Yun website.
Dr. Johnson said he appreciated the storytelling, including the dance The Emperor Goes to the Moon, “I thought that was really well done,” said Dr. Johnson.
His mother said Shen Yun is “an extravaganza you shouldn’t miss.”
Dr. Johnson said he'd recommend Shen Yun to his friends, and he planned to take his 8-year-old daughter who dances to a future performance.
“It’s entertaining, beautiful, the music and settings are great” he said. “It’s definitely worth going to.”
Reporting by Albert Roman and Ben Bendig.
New York-based Shen Yun Performing Arts has three touring companies that perform simultaneously around the world. Shen Yun Performing Arts International Company is performing at the Ikeda Theater in the Mesa Arts Center in Mesa, Ariz., March 2–3, and the Orpheum Theatre in Phoenix, Ariz., March 10. For more information, visit ShenYunPerformingArts.org
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