SHEN YUN PERFORMING ARTS REVIEWS

Shen Yun Is ‘An Emotional and Spiritual Pill for Goodness,' Says Physician

Jan 22, 2026

1/22/2026Updated: 1/23/2026

LOS ANGELES—Shen Yun Performing Arts opened its first performance at The Music Center’s Dorothy Chandler Pavilion on Jan. 22. Among those in attendance were physician Joshua Salem and his wife, Shirin, a pharmacist. The couple had a wonderful afternoon.

“It feels like an emotional and spiritual pill for goodness,” Mr. Salem said with a laugh. “Now I have to go back in traffic and get stress and then I’m going to have to come watch a show again to relax again.”

He was especially impressed by the dancers’ talent and discipline. “They’re very fit. Very healthy. They really practice what they preach, you know? That’s impressive.”

Endowed with 5,000 years of history, China was once known as the “Land of the Divine.” For millennia, its people believed that by keeping their hearts pure and adhering to strict moral standards, they will be blessed by the divine.

However, after the communist takeover and the spread of atheism, much of this traditional culture was systematically destroyed. Today, New York-based Shen Yun’s mission is to bring back the beauty and goodness of China before communism.

Mrs. Salem also enjoyed the matinee. She found the performance highly educational. “We learned a lot about Chinese culture,” she said. “It’s amazing.”

Since its founding in 2006, Shen Yun has met with widespread acclaim and has grown rapidly from one to eight equally-sized companies that tour simultaneously around the world. Each year, audiences can expect a brand-new set of choreography and musical compositions.

For Mr. Salem, the most memorable part of the performance was the series of story-based dances depicting legends from ancient times to the present-day. He loved the lessons about traditional moral values and the importance of kindness.

“It was very nice. We enjoyed it,” he shared. “I like the morality of the show and what they tried to teach, and also the talents.”

“It’s not something you see every day. So, it’s nice to be able to see that brought to you in a live format with a lot of talented arts and music and direction. That was really nice.”

Reflecting on Shen Yun’s mission to bring back traditional culture and raise awareness for the ongoing human rights issue in today’s China under communist rule, Mr. Salem would like to encourage the performers.

“Good luck,” he said. “I hope they could shine their light so strongly that the communism will fall in China.”

“We need more wholesome values in America and around the world,” he added. “To remind us [of] the foundation of what those values are. [It’s] about God, the Creator. This is the themes that [Shen Yun] touched on in the show. It’s very important.”

Reporting by Linda Jiang and Jennifer Tseng.

The Epoch Times is a proud sponsor of Shen Yun Performing Arts. We have covered audience reactions since Shen Yun’s inception in 2006.