WASHINGTON—In every story and dance in Shen Yun Performing Arts, Randy Reynolds saw a touch of the divine.
The performance, Mr. Reynolds said, captures the spirituality of the Chinese culture throughout.
“You can tell that it’s very important, that it’s a key part of Chinese culture, and the dances that they’ve done really convey that spirit to the audience,” said Mr. Reynolds who is former military and now works in engineering for the Department of Defense. He attended the final of seven Shen Yun performances at the Kennedy Center Opera House on Feb. 21 with Wendy Bechtel.
What he felt the dancers conveyed was “the spirituality of a supreme being who had come down and lead the whole culture of people---to the way they think, and the things that they need to think about, and the way they need to relate to each other.”
Traditional Chinese culture is something believed to be divinely inspired. At the heart of this civilization of 5,000 years is the idea of harmony between heaven, earth, and humankind, according to Shen Yun, and that is the spirit the New York-based company seeks to revive through the performing arts.
“I think that comes across on the stage,” Mr. Reynolds said.
That spirit is something Mr. Reynolds said he personally related to, and seeing it come across in Shen Yun showed him “that we are all connected.”
He said he saw stories of bravery in both comedy and drama, moments of excitement, and so much beauty.
Ms. Bechtel agreed: “They are so graceful and so professional in everything they do. It is absolutely amazing---the orchestra, the performers, it is just absolutely out of this world.”
“It’s just very awe inspiring, really awe inspiring,” Ms. Bechtel said. She added that she also felt a connection to the performance, a connection to the divine, and Shen Yun reminded her the connection is “everywhere in our world.”
“It’s all around us,” she said.
Reporting by Sherry Dong and Catherine Yang
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.
