HAMILTON, Canada—Author Ann Monster took in Shen Yun Performing Arts at Hamilton Place Theatre on Sunday afternoon and left the theatre feeling inspired.
“It’s astounding, really astounding,” she said after the Jan. 12 matinee. “I’m amazed at the spirituality behind the whole program—it’s a gorgeous concept.”
Mrs. Monster, who has written three books about her spiritual beliefs, attended the performance with her husband, Bert.
He was surprised to learn that traditional Chinese culture, which thrived for thousands of years, was so spiritual in nature—based on the three pillars of Confucianism, Daoism, and Buddhism.
“It blows me away because I had no idea that the Chinese people had such an incredible spiritual background, which spoke to everyone.”
“It wasn’t limited just to Chinese people, it was worldwide,” said Mr. Monster, adding that Shen Yun was the perfect vehicle to revive the traditional culture.
“This is how to do it!”
New York-based Shen Yun is a classical Chinese dance and music company with a mission to revive China’s divinely inspired culture—which was systematically destroyed under decades of repression by the communist regime.
Mrs. Monster said the loss of culture, since the communist regime came to power in 1949, was a tragedy for the Chinese people.
“What happened between the last 60 years, [the culture] was just taken away from the people, and that’s so sad,” she said.
Mr. Monster said he wished his daughter-in-law, who is Chinese, could have been there for the experience.
“I think she would really benefit from this—to know that this is the history—such a huge spiritual background behind all this, and that lasts 5,000 years. It’s incredible.”
Mrs. Monster was impressed with the opening scene of the production—a piece titled Grand Descent of the Dieties. The story-based dance, animated by state-of-the-art digital backdrops, features divine beings descending from a golden paradise to reincarnate in the human world and guide China’s semi-divine culture.
The piece reminded her of the inter-connected “oneness” of humankind, she said.
“All things are part of one—it’s an exquisite concept,” she said. “It’s beautiful, absolutely beautiful.”
Mr. Monster was delighted by a dance titled Ne Zha Churns the Sea, a lively piece that tells the story of demi-god Ne Zha, who is born out of a giant meatball to save an idyllic seaside village from an evil Dragon King.
“The humour behind it—it has to have an element of humour, because that’s human nature—so it’s very well done,” he said.
Reporting by Sound of Hope Radio and Justina Wheale
New York-based Shen Yun Performing Arts has four touring companies that perform simultaneously around the world. After a successful three-show run in Hamilton, Shen Yun’s World Company will go on to grace the stage in Kitchener-Waterloo. For more information, visit Shen Yun Performing Arts.
The 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.
