SACRAMENTO, Calif.—Shen Yun Performing Arts completed its weekend run at the Sacramento Community Center Theater Sunday afternoon, July 18, along its West Coast tour. The weather was warm, just as the audience, some of whom were visibly touched by the show.
Barbara Gorges, who formerly worked for the Governor’s Committee, and Patti Palamidessi, part owner of the Club Pheasant restaurant, were two such audience members.
“I got my eyeballs all red,” Ms. Gorges said. “Tears—it was beautiful.”
She said she experienced “a lot of emotion, a lot of kindness and gentleness and beauty. It was mesmerizing in the way that they presented it. The music and their dedication to the arts. Beautiful!”
Shen Yun Performing Arts is a New York-based music and dance company with the mission to revive traditional Chinese culture, believed to be divinely-bestowed, by drawing on its rich, 5,000-year history.
The dancers are accompanied by a live orchestra and, combined, have evoked strong emotion from audiences around the world.
One of the show’s principal dancers and choreographers, Michelle Ren, recently explained about the performers in an interview, “Their inner purity and compassion is communicated. The audiences will naturally be astounded by the energy of their conviction.”
Ms. Palamidessi was also moved after the show. She said, “I was so touched by all of this. I was reading the words of the songs and they were so touching and so inspiring—and what they can do to you by reading them—and the music and the colors and the dancing. The art is unbelievable. It’s very, very pretty. I’m very touched by this.
“I’ve always loved the oriental theme,” said Ms. Palamidessi, who also wept during the show. “This was very touching to me. I truly, truly was touched—very glad that we decided [to attend]. I called her and I said, we have to go see this.” She continued, “I said, I just have to see this. This is part of—I feel—I feel all of the oriental themes and the music—I always have.”
“Something was in the air!” Ms. Gorges said, jokingly. Her friend, referring to her eyes, asked, “Is it better?” “It’s a little better,” was the response. Both women had tears in their eyes even 30 minutes after the show.
Ms. Palamidessi also felt they left the show with more knowledge. “I loved it,” she said. “I had no idea that they had classical Chinese dancing. I learned a lot. It was very educational for me.”
Sacramento area residents might be familiar with the Palamidessi family’s restaurant, Club Pheasant, which has been in business for more than 70 years. With the fourth generation of family members now helping to run the business, they truly know the meaning of tradition.
With reporting by Abraham Thompson.
Shen Yun Performing Arts will be at the San Jose Center for the Performing Arts on Wednesday, July 21. For more information, visit ShenYunPerformingArts.org
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