SHEN YUN PERFORMING ARTS REVIEWS

Shen Yun ‘Very, very, very enjoyable,’ Says Morgan Stanley VP

Apr 20, 2013
SHARE
Shen Yun ‘Very, very, very enjoyable,’ Says Morgan Stanley VP
Raymond Abbatepaolo at the matinee performance of Shen Yun Performing Arts at New York’s Lincoln Center on April 20, 2013. (Courtesy of NTD Television)

NEW YORK—Mr. Raymond Abbatepaolo, vice president and wealth advisor at Morgan Stanley said that his first time seeing Shen Yun Performing Arts was “very, very, very enjoyable.”

Mr. Abbatepaolo enjoys cultural events, he said, and Shen Yun was a great experience.

“It was very interesting, worth seeing, and I had a good time,” he said after the April 20 show at Lincoln Center’s David H. Koch Theater in New York.

New York-based Shen Yun came together in 2006 with the mission of reviving 5,000 years of traditional Chinese culture. This year’s performance features 22 different pieces as well as traditional songs. “In less than ten minutes each, Shen Yun dances recount ancient myths, bygone heroes, or celestial paradises,” according to the Shen Yun website.

The dancing in Shen Yun is accentuated by an orchestra that combines classical Western and traditional Chinese instruments, as well as digital backdrops. Mr. Abbatepaolo was impressed by the backdrops which “brings everything to light to tell the story.”

Mr. Abbatepaolo also got the sense that traditional Chinese culture is deeply spiritual, and realized that this is the reason why Shen Yun is not allowed to perform in China.

A few of the dance pieces in Shen Yun depict the persecution of Falun Gong, a traditional Chinese meditation practice based on truthfulness, compassion, and tolerance, that has been persecuted by the Chinese Communist Party for over a decade.

“I did not realize that this was oppressed over there,” he said.

Ancient Chinese culture was heavily influenced by the three original religions of Confucianism, Buddhist, and Taoism, and Falun Gong has helped over a hundred million people understand and return to the essence of the traditional culture, according to Shen Yun’s website.

Falun Gong practitioners have held firm to their beliefs and have continued to expose countless injustices through peaceful means,” the website states. “Their spirit of compassion and tolerance manifest the very essence of China’s 5,000-year-old divine culture.”

Shen Yun ‘Flawless’

Anthony Mele, a security consultant, also enjoyed the performance, calling it “flawless.”

“The dancers’ precision. The music was spectacular. The costumes were just absolutely beautiful,” he said. “It was a terrific job.”

New York-based Shen Yun Performing Arts has three touring companies that perform simultaneously around the world. For more information, visit ShenYunPerformingArts.org

Shen Yun Performing Arts is performing at the David H. Koch Theater at Lincoln Center through April 28.

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.