AUCKLAND, New Zealand—A chance to learn more about his wife’s heritage, an ethnic Chinese Malaysian, was an opportunity Serge Demidenko was not going to miss. When he saw an advertisement for Shen Yun Performing Arts at the Aotea Centre, ASB Theatre he knew this was something he wanted to see.
Professor Demidenko is the current Associate Head of School Engineering & Advanced Technology in Massey University, New Zealand. He enjoyed the matinee performance on Feb. 13 very much: entertainment and education at the same time.
“The dance quality is outstanding and it’s very, very good,” he said. “It’s exciting, it’s very colourful, and it’s absolutely high class, very, very high class … I would say spectacular.”
Based in New York, Shen Yun’s mission is to revive China’s millennia of traditions and culture through music and dance.
“Sophisticated dance techniques, an orchestra joining instruments from both the East and West, beautiful costumes, and a stunning back drop—this is Shen Yun at first glance,” the website states.
“But digging deeper, one discovers a sea of traditional Chinese culture. Mortals and divine beings merge on stage as one. Principles such as benevolence and justice, propriety and wisdom, respect for the heavens, and divine retribution, all come to life, washing over the audience.”
He said he appreciated the insight into China’s past and the ethnic dances.
“I do like different periods of Chinese history presented in this show,” he said. “Not only different historical periods in Chinese history, but also I do like different ethnic groups and ethnic dance. I do really appreciate this additional knowledge … it’s all coming together very nicely.”
He added, “we really want to know more about the heart of China, not the might of China.”
He explained that the additional knowledge he found in Shen Yun gave him a better understanding of humanity.
“I’ts very nice. I do like this idea of bringing ideas of compassion and humanity … it’s not just culture in terms of music, but it’s culture in terms of heart and in terms of soul,” Mr. Demidenko said.
Reporting by NTD Television and Leigh Smith
New York-based Shen Yun Performing Arts has four touring companies that perform simultaneously around the world. For more information, visit Shen Yun Performing Arts.
Epoch Times considers Shen Yun Performing Arts the significant cultural event of our time. We have proudly covered audience reactions since Shen Yun’s inception in 2006.
