WASHINGTON, D.C.—Manny Romero and Olga Montoya originally had plans to see a tenor perform, and when the show canceled they looked to see what other performing arts events they could attend instead—only to realize that they had the perfect opportunity to see
Shen Yun Performing Arts at The Kennedy Center Opera House.
“We were waiting for this show for a long time—years. Years, I’m telling you. I don’t know how many years, but for years we were waiting for this moment,” said Mr. Romero, a business owner, after seeing the
performance on Jan. 26.
Ms. Montoya, a realtor, said, “When we saw the show, I said, oh my God, this is the show I have been waiting for.”
Throughout the performance, Ms. Montoya’s reaction was “amazing, amazing. That was an amazing show.”
New York-based
Shen Yun is the world’s top classical Chinese dance company and takes as its mission to revive 5,000 years of Chinese civilization.
Ms. Montoya said that what made it more amazing was when she learned that
Shen Yun could not be seen in China—which is currently ruled by a communist regime that has tried for 70 years to destroy traditional culture.
Mr. Romero and Ms. Montoya explained that Shen Yun uses dance to tell various
stories, showcasing China’s history, as well as touching on the present day.
“We get every story,” Mr. Romero said. “Every story is different.”
The China they saw on stage was a spiritual one and one that rang true for the pair.
“I’m a very spiritual person, and I think China is one of the most spiritual cultures in the world,” Mr. Romero said. In Shen Yun’s stories, divine beings appeared, including the Creator.
China, once known as the “Land of the Divine,” has an origin story of the Creator coming down with heavenly beings to begin 5,000 years of divinely inspired civilization. Another story references the Creator’s return to the human world.
Mr. Romero and Ms. Montoya expressed that they were deeply touched by these
scenes, which brought them joy and hope.
“I feel that’s the truth,” Mr. Romero said. “I like that you get that in most of the stories that we saw tonight. It’s the same as coming from the Creator.”
Reporting by Weiyong Zhu.
