TULSA, Okla.—Having already graced some of the world’s most renowned stages, Shen Yun Performing Arts 2009 World Tour has at last debuted in Oklahoma. Audience members enthusiastically responded to this highly acclaimed show that opened at the Tulsa Performing Arts Center on March 18.
Joining in the applause was lawyer, Mr. Shacklett, who’s response after seeing the show was, “Oh, it was wonderful!”
He said that he and his wife, a marriage counselor, eagerly awaited the arrival Shen Yun, after hearing that it would be coming to Oklahoma. “We were especially intrigued. We were very enthusiastic to see the show being brought here. We like international students and international people. My wife is from Canada, so we’ve had a lot of students in our home from Tulsa University that are Chinese, Asian, or [of] other ethnic groups. We like to be around international people, international cultures.”
Mrs. Shacklett agreed, adding, “Well, China has such a rich heritage and history, and I see China as the backdrop for a lot of the big themes in life: life and death, hope and love, and peace.”
She said that she was moved by many of the deeper meanings she saw in the performances. “We all are seeking truth, and I was glad that this production brought to the forefront the issues of life that we are all searching for: Why are we here? What is our purpose? Many of us are finding our purpose in life, and I think this production is stimulating and inspiring us to seek for a truth.”
Reflecting on the performance that had the most effect on her, Dignity and Compassion, Mrs. Shacklett said, “I was impressed with the woman who was in chains for being a follower of [Falun Dafa], and she was chained up. To live by freedom of conscience, and one’s own belief, was a great theme.
“There was the thought that they [the performers] expressed, where heaven came down to bring the word of life in the written word. I liked that theme. So there were many great themes like that,” she said.
Mrs. Shacklett said that her profession as a marriage counselor has made her sensitive to the need for people to find a purpose in life. “I’m a part-time counselor/teacher. We do marriage counseling; we do pre-marriage; we do couples who are stuck in marriage, and try to help get them ‘un-stuck. So we do a lot of things with couples and people in general with personal problems and needs, helping them find life and life with purpose and hope.
“I think that one of the messages that people can learn from this is not to stop their constant need to be searching. To strive for excellence, for truth, for faith, for hope. Sometimes, as the song said, we are in this daily grind, but we need to rise above that, and see that our life has purpose, and not be just enslaved with the dailiness and routine of life—to rise above it, and to see that we have a reason to be here.”
NTDTV contributed to this article.
The Epoch Times is a proud sponsor of the Shen Yun Performing Arts 2009 World Tour. For more information please visit ShenYunPerformingArts.org
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