DENVER—International company director Rick Powell and his wife, Regan, who works in finance, were mesmerized by the beauty of Shen Yun Performing Arts when they attended the company’s matinee at the Buell Theatre on April 8.
“It was wonderful. It’s incredibly beautiful and very moving,” Mr. Powell said. “The music and the artistry they put into this is incredible. It was visually stunning.”
Its production comprises a series of short pieces that take its audience on a journey through the dynasties and across the vast regions of China. Using classical Chinese, folk, and ethnic dances, as well as solo musical performances, the artists tell tales from ancient times to the modern day.
Mr. Powell especially enjoyed Shen Yun’s tenor and soprano solos. They’re “both beautiful. The piano accompaniment was beautiful,” he said. The soprano “has a magnificent voice.”
As Christians, the couple was pleasantly surprised to find parallels between traditional Chinese values and their own beliefs, and found the performance deeply inspiring. To Mrs. Powell, the performance conveyed “beauty, purity, generosity, and integrity.”
Spirituality once played a central role in ancient Chinese culture, where it was believed that the arts and moral values were divinely inspired and passed down to humanity. However, following the communist takeover in 1949, atheism was promoted, and many traditional beliefs and practices were erased.
Mr. Powell appreciated that the company is raising awareness about “the struggles going on inside China and what the current Chinese communist Party has removed—the beauty of Chinese culture as expressed here.”
