KANSAS CITY, Mo.—Jazz, R&B, and Gospel singer Sherece Shavel couldn’t stop saying how awesome Shen Yun Performing Arts was.
The matinee performance on April 2 at the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts was so awesome, in fact, that Ms. Shavel said she'd see it again the very next day if she had the time.
According to Shen Yun’s website, “Chinese dance is at the heart of what Shen Yun does. Known for its incredible flips and spins, and its gentle elegance, it is one of the most rigorous and expressive art forms in the world.”
“I just thought that the individuals who performed tonight were very talented. … I think that this is one of the most well put together performances that I have seen in a very long time—a very long time,” Ms. Shavel said.
Having studied music and gone to school for the performing arts while she lived in New Jersey growing up, Ms. Shavel has a unique perspective, not common among the average theatergoers. She describes the overall performance as being very vivid, colorful, dynamic, and dramatic. “I think that the choreography was very well coordinated between the dancers,” she said.
“China’s deep cultural traditions are contained in classical Chinese dance, allowing its movements to be richly expressive, such that the personalities and feelings of characters can be portrayed with unparalleled clarity,” the company’s website states.
The veteran singer loved the way the performance would engage your senses, especially during the emotional highs and lows. “Everything was just engaged and engulfed in the performance, which made it all the more the experience even more intense and even more vivid,” she said.
Each Shen Yun performance is enriched by several moving selections performed by solo vocalists. They sing in the bel canto style and are an integral part of the performance.
Even though the style of Shen Yun’s solo vocalists is very different from what Ms. Shavel is used to hearing, it didn’t change the fact that she thought they were amazing. “What I saw, what I heard, it was all phenomenal. It all to me was high-quality, ... an extraordinary performance.”
“Kudos to the musical director, kudos to the choreographer, kudos, it really was amazing,” she said, literally praising every aspect of the performance.
“I have never seen anything like it. It was wonderful. And I hope that Shen Yun stays around forever,” she added.
Reporting by Catherine Wen and Andrew Darin
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.
