VANCOUVER—Construction company owners Chris and Michelle Holman really dug the classical Chinese dance and music presented at the Shen Yun Performing Arts performance in Vancouver on Saturday.
They attended the Jan. 25 evening performance at Queen Elizabeth Theatre and had glowing remarks about the experience.
“It’s fantastic, the costumes were amazing,” said Mrs. Holman. “The dancers seemed to float around the stage. It was beautiful.”
“It was interesting,” added Mr. Holman. “Its nice how they can explain 5,000 years of history in two hours.”
Mr. and Mrs. Holman are owners of CDC Construction Ltd., a successful company that has completed over $250 million in construction projects in B.C. and Alberta since it’s incorporation in 1984.
The couple attend the theatre frequently. Mr. Holman said he sometimes gets bored and nods off during performances, but had no problem staying awake during Shen Yun.
“This is really exciting,” he said. “The colours and the flowing materials—it was pretty amazing.”
Mrs. Holman noted the high-tech digital moving backdrops were popping up in recent performances she had seen, but Shen Yun’s use of animation in their backdrops stood out from the rest.
“That was the best use of it I’ve ever seen,” she said, adding they were more interactive and creative than others she had experienced.
“When they were jumping in and out of the screen that was amazing.”
New York-based Shen Yun is the world’s premier classical Chinese dance and music company. It was formed in 2006 by overseas Chinese artists who had a vision to revive 5,000 years of divinely inspired Chinese culture.
According to the Shen Yun website, this culture—including its spirituality, art forms, and values—have been decimated by decades of repression under the Chinese communist regime.
Mrs. Holman said the story-based dances featuring legends and heroes from China’s long history whetted her appetite to learn more about the history.
“The storylines, learning more about the culture makes me want to look more into it,” she said.
“Chinese history is something I don’t know about, so it’s nice to learn about it here,” added Mr. Holman.
Mr. Holman also appreciated the bi-lingual emcees, who introduced each dance piece before it played out on stage.
“They were good, they filled you in quickly about what was happening,” he said. “It was well done.”
Reporting by Ryan Moffat and Justina Wheale
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.
