OXFORD, UK—“It’s amazing. It’s so stylish, so athletic—absolutely brilliant!” said Carol Nielsen, a well-known vineyard owner in Oxford, praising Shen Yun after attending the performance.
Carol Nielsen and her husband, Bob Nielsen, own a prominent local vineyard whose wines have received awards at the prestigious Decanter World Wine Awards and are exported to Switzerland, Japan, and Singapore. The couple attended Shen Yun’s opening performance at Oxford’s New Theatre on the afternoon of Jan. 7.
“It’s lovely. It’s very interesting. It’s a fusion,” Mr. Nielsen said, summing up his overall impression. “It’s an interesting blend of East and West.”
He added that the dance pieces were “very athletic and very well performed.”
Mrs. Nielsen agreed, saying, “Heavens! I feel very happy, because it is such a spectacle, but also just in awe of the athleticism and the professionalism. The music is great as well. Often people look at the stage and don’t look at the musicians, because they’re hidden, but the music is fantastic.”
Shen Yun’s live orchestra combines Western and Eastern instruments, blending the grandeur of symphonic music with the lyrical charm of ancient Chinese melodies.
“It’s a lovely fusion,” Mrs. Nielsen said.
The couple also expressed a particular fondness for Shen Yun’s ethnic dance segments. Mr. Nielsen noted that he liked the Manchurian dance featuring “the girls dancing on the little shoes,” while his wife said she liked the dance with the Mongolian horses.
Shen Yun’s mission is to revive traditional Chinese culture and present audiences with the authentic China as it existed before communism.
The Nielsens enjoy exploring different cultures and are fascinated by the different ways people around the world do things. They said it was unfortunate that Shen Yun is unable to perform in China.
“It’s just a shame that it’s a dance company that’s been formed in New York rather than China itself,” Mrs. Nielsen said.
The couple also appreciated how Shen Yun conveys traditional values such as truthfulness, compassion, and loyalty through art.
“That all comes through,” Mr. Nielsen said, adding that these are “universal” values.
Mrs. Nielsen added that any culture seeking to thrive needs to embrace those values.
They were particularly struck by Shen Yun’s portrayal of ancient China’s divine culture. The opening piece, which depicts the Creator summoning divine beings to descend from heaven and establish China’s 5,000-year civilisation, made a strong impression.
Mrs. Nielsen described it as “very divinely depicted,” and said, “It’s an interesting story.”
