AMNÉVILE, France—Artist Sonya Dziabas has led a rich career in acting, dance, and painting, giving her a keen eye for beauty. When she attended Shen Yun Performing Arts’ matinee at Galaxie Amnéville on Dec. 19, she was utterly mesmerized.

“The performance was very moving for me. It stirred many emotions. I didn’t expect it to be so spiritual, with such a strong sense of the divine,” she said.

“Practicing this meditation in the West represents a freedom you don’t have in China. I understand that [many] of the dancers across the eight touring companies, which perform simultaneously around the world, are Chinese artists living in exile in New York, in the United States,” she shared.

Also, Ms. Dziabas enjoyed the music that accompanied the dances. Shen Yun’s orchestra—using a classical Western orchestration as its foundation to highlight traditional Chinese instruments such as the erhu and pipa—is the first in the world to successfully blend Eastern and Western musical traditions.

“I found the orchestra to be extremely harmonious, melodic, and very spiritual. Even the music carried that quality,” she said.

“In the show, the divine was everywhere: in the music, the dance, the choreography, and the theme of the performance.”

She believes that Shen Yun spreads “a message of hope.”

“It’s about a changing world, about the divine already being present here on Earth among us. It’s a message of hope,” Ms. Dziabas said.

“I’m very happy and delighted to have seen it, and I would highly recommend it to my friends.”