SAN ANTONIO, Texas—Buck Russell, who works in railroad safety, came to see Shen Yun Performing Arts with his family and friends on Jan. 11 at the Tobin Center for the Performing Arts.

“It’s exciting. To tell you the truth, it’s very colorful, entertaining ... learning something about different cultures, different people. And I like how they’re going through history with it, even to modern age, which is actually really cool to learn,” Mr. Russell said.

Shen Yun, based in New York, is on a mission to present “China before communism,” and revive people’s connection with 5,000 years of Chinese civilization and culture.

Mr. Russell, with his wife and sister-in-law, brought his daughter and her friend to see Shen Yun together.

“[It] was actually kind of neat having a younger guest with us to understand that culture and what’s going on today and how things will definitely change,” he said.

Shen Yun signature integration of the stage with its digital backdrop is patented. The versatility of the technology allows the set to expand or change scenes in the blink of an eye, creating endless storytelling possibilities.

“I think one of the neatest things is that screen. How do they interact with the screen?!” Mr. Russell wondered.

John and Nancy O'Donnell were also in the audience for the matinee performance.

“I think it was good. I definitely would come and see it again. I know every year they change the show,” Mr. O’Donnell, a lead nurse, said.

Shen Yun’s artists are trained in classical Chinese dance, one of the most comprehensive dance systems in the world.

“It seemed effortless. It seemed like they did it with such ease. And I was mentioning to my husband when they landed from flipping, it’s like you can barely hear them land. That amazed me,” Mrs. O’Donnell, an elementary special education teacher, said.

A recurring theme in Shen Yun’s dance stories is a belief that goodness will be rewarded by the divine.

“It makes you feel you have to be with the Creator at all times and you have to be nice and treat people [well],” Mr. O’Donnell said.