MONTPELLIER—Montis Puellarum, the “Mountain of Young Girls”, Mons Pestellarium, the “Hill of Spices”—historians attribute several origins to the metropolis’ name. Unlike many French cities, which have their origins in antiquity, the Mediterranean city was founded just over 1,000 years ago, in the middle of the medieval period.
On Thursday, March 5, Montpellier welcomed the company that brings 5,000 years of Chinese history and traditional culture to life—Shen Yun Performing Arts.
Georges Jacono is a young retiree from the French Navy. He was at the Corum in Montpellier with his wife Danielle, a former history and geography teacher.
In 40 years of service, this lieutenant-colonel has intervened in several conflicts. In Sarajevo in 1993, he came under fire from Bosnian soldiers. Hit in the spleen and lung, he eventually escaped with his life. Mr. Jacono was awarded the Légion d'Honneur, the highest and most prestigious French order of merit.
At the end of these years spent in the service of national defense, Mr. Jacono turned his attention to protecting the mining installations of the French multinational Orano in Niger.
“It was like being in a dream,” Mrs. Jacono said. “It was really magical with all the costume colors. It was vaporous, with this lightness; everything was well done.”
“I loved the fact that the dancers moved from the stage into the set. I thought it was fabulous!” she added.
But above all, the couple appreciated the values conveyed by Shen Yun: “A message of kindness, sharing and love,” said Mrs. Jacono.
Mr. Jacono enjoyed discovering, through “little vignettes from everyday life ... the good feelings that allow us to dominate people who want to dominate others, to impose by force.”
Mr. Jacono appreciated “this message of openness,” which he felt was interesting “in today’s world, which is guided more by personal interests and the quest for wealth,” and which “should perhaps be heard by many more, so that we can all live in harmony and respect one another.”
For the soldier, Shen Yun allows us to discover another China: “It’s great because without them, we wouldn’t know. Because the image we have of China is the image of recent China. And when we learn about China through documentaries or films, we think of ancient China, but we don’t see it in this light.”
Mr. Jacono appreciated the fact that these messages were conveyed through dance and classical Chinese music.
“It’s the best way to get people to understand that there’s something else out there and, above all, to have been able to keep it all going!” he said.
“We wish them every success for the future,” Mr. Jacono said.
