GOLD COAST, Australia—Professional dancer and instructor Courtney Damic had never experienced classical Chinese dance before attending Shen Yun Performing Arts at the HOTA Home of the Arts on Feb. 26. Exiting the matinee, she was full of praise for the technical mastery and emotional depth displayed by the New York-based artists.
“It was amazing, absolutely amazing,” Ms. Damic said.
“They move like water, so effortlessly but just absolutely beautiful and stunning. I was very, very impressed. [There was] so much strength, so much lightness—like feathers—you can’t even hear them. Their performance faces [were] absolutely amazing—smiles all the time. It was great, they really drew you in.”
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. What many may not realize is that numerous tumbling techniques often associated with gymnastics and acrobatics actually originate from classical Chinese dance.
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. Damic loved how the artists brought classical fairy tales and modern-day stories to life through dance. They conveyed each character’s emotions with remarkable precision and conviction.
“Their heart is on their sleeve and they just put every emotion into every movement they do,” she shared. “Their faces told the stories, their bodies told the stories—everything.”
One of the most memorable pieces for Ms. Damic was “How Monkey King Came to Be.” The story is inspired by the classic Chinese novel “Journey to the West,” in which the Monkey King learned the secret art of transformation to rescue his kingdom from monsters.
“I really like that one. There was a lot of humor as well, it wasn’t just so serious and that was nice to see,” she said. “With the backdrop and everything—it was so different to whatever I’ve seen before. I was not expecting that.”
Shen Yun’s innovative digital technology creates seamless interaction between the backdrop projection and the performers on stage. By extending the stage to infinite realms, this patented 3D invention brings to the audience storytelling without limits.
Moreover, Ms. Damic thought the matinee was very educational and was deeply impressed by the artists’ mission to revive traditional culture while raising awareness of ongoing human rights issues in present-day China.
“They told it perfectly, and they told you all the information as simple as possible too. You can see it throughout all the little stories and everything. It was great,” she said.
Shen Yun is “very different. Definitely worth coming and watching and learning about the culture as well as learning about where [classical] Chinese dance came from and its history. …[Dance moves] we do these days comes from Chinese dance and I didn’t know that—I’m definitely going to teach my children that.”
While she was saddened to learn that Shen Yun is currently banned in China because of its commitment to bringing back traditional spiritual beliefs persecuted by the communist regime, Ms. Damic was grateful that the artists are sharing their craft with audiences around the world.
“That’s really sad, to be honest. It’s heartbreaking that they can’t even perform in their own country,” she said.
“I just hope things would change eventually. I’m glad they’re sharing it with the rest of the world. They can’t do it with their own country [but] they’re spreading it around the world; I love that.”
