GREELEY, Colo.—Myrian and John Nowosad of Colorado had been waiting over a year to see Shen Yun. They were but one couple in the audience for the July 31 evening performance at the Union Colony Civic Center.

“We bought the tickets when the pandemic started,” Mrs. Nowosad said. “So we have been waiting for more than a year to come and see the show. And it was worthwhile.”

Mr. Nowosad, an entrepreneur, said the “costumes, the colors, and the backgrounds were wonderful.”

“It’s very prescient about China before communism,” Mr. Nowosad said. “And that’s definitely an important thing because [present day China is] not going in the right direction.”

Shen Yun “is a wonderful depiction of ancient China,” he added. “And there’s a powerful message of what’s wrong with China today.”

School director Weston Kurz and his wife Kristin Kurz called the show “fun for the family.”

It also sparked his curiosity, he said. “It makes me want to know more about China, just by watching the show and just seeing the history, pre-communist China,” Mr. Kurz said.

“It’s sad that it’s not been shown in China because of the Communism, so it’s good that we get to see it. I think that it’s very important to keep the history alive, no matter how oppressed it is. It’s really good to see it,” she said.

Paul Opler, an entomology professor at Colorado State University came to the performance with his wife, Evi Buckner-Opler, a retired teacher and wood carving artist.

“This was magnificent, highly talented, artistic, and lots of feelings,” said Mr. Opler. “It’s a feeling of compassion—compassion over evil.”

Mrs. Opler said the performance inspired her to “be a better person.”

“There’s a higher being and we have to connect and not forget that higher being no matter what we call him or her,” she said. “And we forget that today. And that higher being listens to all of us. The shows showed that, the beauty.”