SAN JOSE, Calif.—Semiconductor vice president Brenton Bloom and psychologist John Patterson started their New Year well with Shen Yun’s opening 2015 show in San Jose on Jan. 2 at the Center for the Performing Arts.
Both men and Mr. Bloom’s wife Susie were blown away by the show.
“I love it,” Susie said. “It’s great.”
Mr. Bloom specifically pointed out that the dancers were “really well disciplined,” and that “the music is just fantastic. It’s really uplifting and has a lot of energy.”
Shen Yun’s orchestra is unique in the way it combines Eastern and Western instruments. A traditional Western symphony orchestra serves as the orchestra’s foundation. Into the orchestra’s center are added several traditional Chinese instruments—the pipa (Chinese lute), the suona (a wind instrument with a sharp, comical sound), and erhu (sometimes known as the two-stringed Chinese violin). Chinese percussion instruments such as the gong are also added into the percussion section.
Mr. Patterson said he really enjoyed the dance “that had the long sleeves that went everywhere. That’s beautiful!”
The dance to which he was referring, entitled Sleeves of Grace, was a style of classical Chinese dance often called a water sleeves dance. It is called thus because the sleeves flow around the dancers like water; it has a history longer than that of ballet in the West.
The Pattersons and the Blooms were only two families of many audience members who came out raving about how much they loved watching Shen Yun. Mr. Patterson summed it up well when he said, “I love all of it because it’s so beautiful ... beautiful ... one word I can say for it all is beautiful.”
Reporting by Alex Ma, Jennifer Liang, and Beth Lambert
New York-based Shen Yun Performing Arts has four touring companies that perform simultaneously around the world. For more information, visit ShenYunPerformingArts.org
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.
