NICE, France---Didier Debusschere is a real estate entrepreneur in the Lille region, but he discovered Shen Yun Performing Arts in the south of France, in Nice, on Sunday, March 31.
Accustomed to major opera performances in Paris, this time Mr. Debusschere discovered classical Chinese dance.
“It’s a different classical show, but it’s just as powerful and enjoyable to watch,” he said, adding he enjoyed the “very beautiful costumes” and “very, very beautiful dances.”
He congratulated the dancers for “a very beautiful overall spirit” which he describes as “formidable and fabulous.”
He was moved by New York-based Shen Yun’s orchestra, which accompanies the dancers on stage.
“The music is superb! We like opera music, but the musicians here are really great!” he said enthusiastically.
“The conductor is very good, the music flows very well. And besides, there is a perfect harmony between the music and the movements, and that’s very good.”
Mr. Debusschere also found this harmony in the animated backdrop, a unique concept that combines the display of sumptuous colorful landscapes with the movements of the dancers on stage, who thus seem to have come straight out of the landscape.
“I saw that it was something that was patented, it’s great! In terms of cinematography, I think it’s great, I’ve never seen it before, I didn’t know it existed and that we could do it,” he said.
Shen Yun’s mission is to revive traditional Chinese culture. On the Shen Yun website, it is explained as follows: “China was once known as the Divine Land. This profound name describes a time in China’s ancient history when deities and mortals coexisted, and a belief that the divine transmitted a rich culture to the people of the Earth.”
“For 5,000 years divine culture flourished in the land of China. Humanity’s treasure was nearly lost, but through breathtaking music and dance, Shen Yun is bringing back this glorious culture.”
Spirituality is therefore an integral part of the stories told in Shen Yun, highlighting the universal values that shaped not only China, but also all other civilizations. Courage, loyalty, kindness, patience are therefore values conveyed by Shen Yun’s heroes.
“I found that we felt this harmony with the divine in the show ... For me, it’s really very, very good,” Mr. Debusschere said.
While Mr. Debusschere appreciates and recognizes the importance of these values, he nevertheless regrets that “unfortunately, these are things that are being left out in the new generation.”
Yet it is the new generations who are involved in this contemporary story that has particularly moved Mr. Debusschere.
“The story of the prison, with the young woman whose organs were removed is something I was not aware of, you know,” he said, referring to the persecution of Falun Gong practitioners by the Chinese communist regime. This mini-drama dance recalls the terrible current fact of the organ trafficking perpetrated on the people practicing this meditation practice based on the universal principles of truthfulness, compassion, and tolerance.
Mr. Debusschere thus expressed gratitude to Shen Yun for allowing him to learn more about contemporary China while traveling from his comfortable seat through traditional China, a mosaic of ethnic groups and dynasties.
“It’s still nice because when you visit a country, it’s also to get to know the traditions. You’re getting up to speed with the country. And then, without being there, you find exactly what is happening there,” Mr. Debusschere said.
