VANCOUVER—Shen Yun Performing Arts’ matinee show at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre on Jan. 17 was warmly received by the audience, with spontaneous applause here and there rewarding the feats of the dancers and laughter at the funny bits.

Sarah Lee, a professional Korean dancer who herself has performed at the Queen Elizabeth, said she loved Shen Yun’s depiction of ancient Chinese culture through music and dance. 

“Very beautiful. I like this show, it’s amazing, spectacular. It’s a really beautiful show,” Ms. Lee said during the intermission. 

“I like Chinese culture,” she said, adding that she enjoyed the colourful costumes and the dancing. The centrepiece of Shen Yun is classical Chinese dance, but the show also includes ethnic and folk dances from China’s diverse regions.

“The dancing has a very beautiful technique,” Ms. Lee said. 

“I like Shen Yun. I saw this show four times.” 

She was also smitten with the orchestra, which is unique in that it blends Chinese and Western instruments—the Chinese instruments lead the melodies, backed by a traditional wWstern orchestra.

“The orchestra is such beautiful music. It’s so, so amazing,” she said. 

Shen Yun’s signature backdrops also came in for praise. The backdrops are animated for the story-dances and make it seem like the dancers can enter and leave the scene in the background.

“It’s nice to see how the dancers and the display work really well. It’s magic.”

Shen Yun and its mission to revive China’s authentic traditional culture have drawn top talent from around the world; many artists are winners of international competitions in dance, choreography, and music. The New York-based group tours globally each season with an all-new show, playing in some 100 cities in 20 countries.

New York-based Shen Yun Performing Arts has four touring companies that perform around the world. For more information, visit ShenYunPerformingArts.org

Epoch Times considers Shen Yun Performing Arts the significant cultural event of our time. We have proudly covered audience reaction since Shen Yun’s inception in 2006.