BALTIMORE—City Councilman William Pete Welch from the 9th District saw the last of two Shen Yun Performing Arts performances at The Hippodrome Theatre on Feb. 10. For the councilmember, it was a heavenly reminder.
“It was mesmerizing, you couldn’t take your eyes off the stage,” he said. Mr. Welch especially loved the spirituality of the culture, evident in soprano Yu Ming’s song “Choose the Right Future.”
“Her voice was perfect,” and the translated lyrics on the backdrop meant the audience members could all understand the beauty of what was conveyed, he said. It was a spirituality you had to relate to, Mr. Welch said, because she was singing about one’s path. “And only by following that path is your destiny fulfilled.”
“We sometimes get lost in the secular world but we have to remember that we’re spiritual beings in physical bodies and that we all have the same destiny and we all come from the same source,” Mr. Welch said.
Also in the audience was Clarice, a retired city government employee in human services. Clarice was also moved by the songs and lyrics of New York-based Shen Yun’s bel canto vocalists, who sing original Chinese compositions with philosophical themes like the meaning of life.
“I was drawn to tears listening and studying the words of what she was singing about. Which I understood about humanity was back then and as it is now,” Clarice said. It was a reminder to people who had fallen off the path, she understood, people moving too fast and losing manner and respect and peacefulness. And in the songs was a beautiful reminder. “I had to wipe the tears because of the beauty in her voice,” she said.
Clarice had first learned about Shen Yun last year, but was not able to see it then. When she saw the advertisements again this year, she wanted to see it for her birthday, just two days ago on Feb. 8. Her daughter, all the way in Kansas, called the hotline to buy her a ticket as a birthday gift.
“I said, wow, my prayers are answered,” she said.
The dancers, too, were just heavenly for Clarice. She described how female dancers in blue created a water-like effect in one dance, and how the costumes, grace, and beauty came together in a fantastic way.
“It was just so beautiful to behold. It is indescribable, that is how beautiful it was,” she said.
“I come from a generation that loved dance, that loved the culture, loved music, loved the people. If people would allow folk to express themselves in their music and their art, it would be a lot better,” said Ms. Clarice.
She expressed faith for the Chinese in China today being persecuted for spiritual beliefs banned under communist rule. She expressed joy in seeing these old dance forms being brought to life, and felt wonder at the ancient stories. She spoke of the reverence in the old dynasties, pointing to how generals would interact with the emperor.
Ms. Clarice loves to learn about cultures. She had traced her ancestry once and learned she was part Asian, and as a human services worker worked with people from 59 countries. Seeing Shen Yun, she felt gratified.
“If you have good spiritual love in your heart, your light will shine, no matter where you go,” she said.
Reporting by NTD Television, Jenny Jing, and Catherine Yang
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.
