NASHVILLE, Tenn.—Business owners Brad and Leslie Moore attended Shen Yun Performing Arts at The Fisher Center for the Performing Arts on May 10 and celebrated a birthday.
“We enjoyed everything about the show. The costumes, the dance, and the artistic interplay of the show were great. We enjoyed the freedom, we enjoyed the culture,” Mr. Moore said.
“I thought it was fabulous. I don’t really have any other words to say other than just really enjoyed it. I enjoyed everything about it. We'll come back and see it again.”
Based in New York, Shen Yun is the world’s premier
classical Chinese dance company. Through music and dance, Shen Yun’s
mission is to revive 5,000 years of Chinese civilization, or China before communism.
Mrs. Moore said she was fascinated with the style of dance, which included tumbling techniques like high-flying leaps and flips,
techniques that have since inspired sports like gymnastics and acrobatics.
“I felt the dance was very disciplined, but also creative and lively,” she said. “And the backdrops, how it was done, was really well done. It was really beautiful. It was immersive. I would say it was an immersive experience. And the
costuming was lovely. The dance was spectacular.”
Mrs. Moore said that she played a string instrument, and so to see that one of the musical solos featured the ancient
two-stringed erhu, and performed so well by a virtuoso, was something she really appreciated.
“You know, you can’t just go learn this anywhere,” she said. “It’s nice to see that music alive. So, you know, you would hate to lose that tradition, and so I enjoyed that component as well.”
“It was beautiful. It was beautiful,” she said.
Mr. Moore said one thing he loved about
Shen Yun was that it provided new exposure to this ancient culture.
“It’s unique. It’s not Western, but it’s a unique insight into the Eastern culture, and we enjoyed seeing it,” he said.
The Moores said they were also aware that Shen Yun
cannot perform in China, where religious believers suffer persecution from the Chinese communist regime, and this was another reason they wanted to support Shen Yun.
“We’ve been to countries before where we’ve seen communism and people rise above it, and it’s definitely deflating, beyond deflating, and deafening to a culture. So, it’s nice to see,” Mrs. Moore said. “It’s just nice to see it alive.”
Reporting by Xinxin Teng and Catherine Yang.
