WEST PALM BEACH, Fla.—Ballet dancer Lauren Berlin thoroughly enjoyed Shen Yun Performing Arts’ evening show on Feb. 3 at the Kravis Center for the Performing Arts. A classically trained artist herself, Ms. Berlin knows good dancing when she sees it.
“The technical aspects and the dance forms and the structure—they’re very, very trained artists, and it’s exciting, there’s so much energy and momentum,” she shared. “It’s beautiful. The costumes are exciting. I love it very much.”
Based in New York, Shen Yun artists are highly trained in classical Chinese dance—an art form with a history spanning thousands of years, celebrated for its athleticism and expressive power. According to the company’s website, the classical Chinese dance seen in China today is heavily mixed with military and modern styles. Only at Shen Yun can the audience experience it in its purest form, preserved as it was passed down through generations.
Ms. Berlin was stunned by the dancers’ strength and flexibility. While few may realize it, many tumbling techniques often associated with gymnastics and acrobatics actually originate from classical Chinese dance.
“[There’s] a lot of flexibility, the aerial jumping of the men is very impressive. It would take most dancers their whole lifetime to train to get this good,” she said.
“The girls’ extensions—very impressive, and they dance with their face: the characterization, the storytelling. I really appreciate it.”
When asked how she would introduce Shen Yun to her friends and family, Ms. Berlin said she would describe it as “exciting” and “beautiful.”
“It’s beautiful in its simplicity, and it’s technically excellent and delicious,” she added.
Beyond the artistry, Ms. Berlin also appreciated the performers’ mission to revive China’s 5,000-year-old divinely inspired culture and spiritual traditions, while raising awareness of ongoing human rights abuses under the current communist regime.
In fact, many of Shen Yun’s founding members fled to America to escape persecution by the Chinese Communist Party.
Ms. Berlin said that even after reading online before attending the performance, she wasn’t sure what to expect. By the end of the evening, she found the experience deeply thought-provoking.
“I think art is supposed to provoke thinking. I’ve never been to China before, never been to Asia...[but] I’m happy that the philosophy [and] spirituality is able to find a safe place here to express themselves,” she said.
The artists’ “story of coming to America—everybody’s story—is about [presenting] the most authentic expression of whatever they believe. It’s beautiful to see dance being combined with spirituality or [societal] statements, it’s very beautiful.”
