CHARLOTTE, N.C.— Randy Jones, vice president for an engineering company in North Carolina, was delighted by the exquisiteness of Shen Yun Performing Arts at the Belk Theater at Blumenthal Performing Arts Center on the afternoon of March 4.

“There was great storytelling going on … it’s fun to mix storytelling and beautiful flowing dance,” he said.

Mr. Jones was particularly captivated by the beauty of the dancers’ couture costumes.

“The color, the fabric, the way that they flow with the music and the dance, it’s so complementary to what the artists are doing,” he said.

According to the company’s website, Shen Yun’s costumes and colors—believed to have been brought down from the heavens— are true to traditional aesthetics and styles, painting each dance piece with the splendor of the past.

“It’s a shame that [Shen Yun] is not promoted by the current government in China,” said Mr. Jones, “so I’m glad it’s been preserved [in] New York.”

“You can’t ever suppress the human spirit,” he said. “Governments can try, but there’s a way that the human spirit will prevail.”