CINCINNATI, Ohio—Shen Yun Performing Arts performed at the Aronoff Center for the Arts on March 2.
Jonathon Spanyer, an orthopedic surgeon at two Cincinnati hospitals, brought his daughters to the performance. “It’s very, very beautiful,” he said. “I’m here with my daughters, and we’re really enjoying the show. But, also, I think it’s wise to be aware of what’s happening in the world so that we can protect ourselves, and we can hopefully help everywhere in the world.
“The performance [gave] me a good insight into some of the crimes against humanity that are happening in the world, particularly in communist China,” he said. “It’s very concerning and unfortunately a threat in China, [but it also] threatens all of us, including those of us in the United States.”
Dr. Spanyer also appreciated Shen Yun’s spiritual message. “It suggests to me that all cultures of all people in the world seek the divine. We somehow seek God; we seek something better than ourselves, something bigger than ourselves.
“And it’s really a great joy to be involved with it because it helps us understand the details of each culture’s view of God and how our cultural view of God changes. We all seek something bigger than ourselves. We all seek something good in the world.
“The show is enlightening, beautiful, entertaining, and mind- and eye-opening,” he said.
The Music ‘Was Very Uplifting’
Richard and Jennifer Petticrew found the performance “delightful,” according to Mr. Petticrew.When the curtain first opened, Mrs. Petticrew, a senior analyst for Omnicare, said how happy and captivated she was to watch the performance. “I got tears. I was really, really happy,” she said. “Just the thought of what the show stands for and the struggles that they incurred.”
Through classical Chinese dance and music, Shen Yun is sharing with the world the beauty of China’s authentic 5,000 years of history before communism. Since its founding in 2006, the company has received worldwide accolades for its mission to revive traditional Chinese culture.
The Petticrews had visited China in the past, “so we were excited to come and see this and see the pageantry,” Mr. Petticrew said.
The lyrics shown on the stage display helped Mr. Petticrew to appreciate the message. “I thought the music was very fitting. The sayings up on the screen matched and was very uplifting to me as far as how we come from heaven and how atheism is not the truth. And that the divine and the Creator is what we should believe in.”
The message of hope impressed Mrs. Petticrew. “It’s a good story. It shows the whole view of the history and the challenges, but also the hope that is there. I mean, we have to have hope,” she said.
