DALLAS—Retired ballet dancer turned consultant Chantara Ward and company director John Damato enjoyed a wonderful evening at Shen Yun Performing Arts’ fifth performance at the Eisemann Center on Jan. 17.
Ms. Ward was deeply impressed by the dancers’ talent and skill.
“It was beautiful. Visually, it was just so stunning. I loved the colors, I loved the moves. It was absolutely stunning,” she said, adding that the dancers “were marvelous. Absolutely marvelous. I loved the choreography—you knew where to look on the stage and when you should be looking. It was wonderful.”
Based in New York, Shen Yun artists are highly trained in classical Chinese dance. Dating back thousands of years, it is one of the most athletic and expressive art forms in the world.
According to the Shen Yun website, the classical Chinese dance we see in China today is heavily mixed with military and modern dance styles. Only at Shen Yun can you find it performed in its purest form—the way it was originally passed down through the generations.
Ms. Ward described the dancers as “absolutely inspirational.” They made her nostalgic for her own days as a dancer with the Sacramento Ballet. She said she loved learning about classical Chinese dance and “how it has evolved through the culture, through the ages, through history.”
Mr. Damato, who came from a musical family, also greatly enjoyed the performance.
The music “was wonderful,” he said. “That’s something that stood out to me, the professionalism and the creativity of the pit orchestra, as well as the synchronized dancing and how that aligned with the music that was being performed.”
Shen Yun’s live orchestra features a classical Western ensemble as its foundation while highlighting traditional Chinese instruments such as the pipa, an ancient Chinese lute, and the erhu, a two-stringed instrument.
It is the first orchestra in the world to successfully combine Eastern and Western musical traditions.
Mr. Damato was moved by the effect this blend created.
“That was really neat, and that was something that I didn’t pick up on at first,” he said. “But once [the hosts] mentioned that, I was like, ‘Oh, that makes sense.’”
“Musical feelings sometimes are more intuitive; it’s hard to intellectualize. I would say I felt soothed to a degree, calm,” he said.
Though not particularly spiritual himself, Mr. Damato still appreciated seeing the divine-inspired elements of Shen Yun’s program.
“It’s interesting. ... I can definitely appreciate it. It moved me, to a degree, emotionally. I think that’s kind of a spiritual experience in itself,” he said. “I’m curious to learn more.”
During the 2026 world tour, Shen Yun’s eight touring companies are bringing their stunning performances to over 200 cities. With a brand-new program each year, the company’s 20th anniversary marks another season full of fresh surprises for both first-time and returning audiences alike.
