SHEN YUN PERFORMING ARTS REVIEWS

Shen Yun Is ‘Stunning. Highly Recommend,’ Says Business Owner

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Shen Yun Is ‘Stunning. Highly Recommend,’ Says Business Owner
Annie Brandon (L) and Grace Campbell enjoyed Shen Yun's evening show at the Keller Auditorium on April 18, 2026. Frank Zhang/The Epoch Times
Epoch Newsroom
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PORTLAND, Ore.—Business owner Grace Campbell and Annie Brandon, a nurse, had been hoping to see Shen Yun Performing Arts for many years before finally getting the opportunity to attend the company’s third performance at the Keller Auditorium on April 18.

“It was beautiful,” Ms. Brandon said. She especially enjoyed “Peacock Paradise,” where celestial fairies danced among the clouds, and “Water Sleeves,” where the dancers’ long sleeves billowed and flowed like gentle waves across the stage.

According to the company’s website, these sleeves were part of ancient Chinese feminine attire representing humility and grace.
Based in New York, Shen Yun is the world’s premier classical Chinese dance and music company.

Its production is composed of a series of short pieces that take its audience on a ride 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.

Ms. Campbell also had a wonderful time. “It was stunning,” she said. “Highly recommend. I loved the live orchestra, that was huge for me.”

“I really liked the [two-stringed] instrument, that was really cool. It was beautiful.”

The erhu is a 4,000-year-old Chinese instrument that mimics the human voice. Though it has only two strings, it can express a wide range of emotions, resonating with the profound depths of the human soul.

Reflecting on the company’s mission to revive China’s 5,000-year-old divine-inspired culture and traditional moral values, Ms. Brandon said it’s very important.

“Today’s modern world lacks tradition, so it’s something that the world needs,” she shared. Shen Yun is “beautiful and unique. It makes me want to do a lot more reading about, like, China and the different [dynasties].”

“That tradition grounds us and brings us together,” Ms. Campbell chimed in. She was especially touched by the story-based dance raising awareness about the Chinese Communist Party’s ongoing persecution of the people of faith in China.

“That was meaningful,” she said. It conveys the message “that you have to hold fast to what you believe in your heart, and that [though] life has suffering, you have to come back to what you believe, and believe in a higher meaning.”

Given a chance to meet Shen Yun’s performers, Ms. Campbell would like to let them know: “Thank you, and you’re amazing.”

“They’re obviously very disciplined in what they practice and all the hours they put into it,” Ms. Brandon added. “It’s really beautiful to watch.”

Reporting by Frank Zhang 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.
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