GUNPO, South Korea—Jung Soyeong, emeritus professor of the Department of Dance at Central South University and art director of Jung Soyeong Ballet Company, highly praised the show presented by Shen Yun Performing Arts New York Company at Gunpo Culture and Arts Center on April 24, 2015.
“If ballet is a Western art that requires difficult technical skills, this dance show [performed by Shen Yun] is a gift of gods. Experiencing the performance, it felt like being thoroughly purified physically and spiritually,” she exclaimed.
Fascinated by Shen Yun’s performance, Ms. Jung said, “In the past, I thought that ballet is the top-level art, but I don’t think so now. In particular, some movements such as tumbling, spinning, etc. are something that we cannot see in Western ballet.”
“Shen Yun is the only company that can perfectly include thoughts and emotions into dance,” she said.
“This is my sixth year seeing Shen Yun’s performance. I found its performance more and more beautiful and its choreography more and more exquisite every year. It’s great to apply difficult technical skills to the dance.”
“Personally I think this show perfectly showcases the emotions, spirit and thoughts in the 5,000 years of Chinese culture. But it’s a pity that such an outstanding spectacular show reviving the 5,000 years of Chinese culture cannot be seen in China. I am really curious about that.”
After more than 60 years of communist rule in China, and especially during the Cultural Revolution, traditional Chinese culture was all but wiped out. New York-based Shen Yun has as its mission to restore and revive Chinese culture.
“If we could see this show performing in Beijing, I think Shen Yun would be invited to perform in various places one after another.”
‘Exquisite Vibrant Colors’
“I’ve learned martial arts ... As the dances performed by Shen Yun contain very difficult movements, I think they are performed by the dancers who have cultivated themselves rigorously. Their movements are so delicate,” praised Korean painter Jeon Yongdeok, after he saw Shen Yun Performing Arts New York Company’s April 24 performance.
“Though what I mostly deal with in my profession are Chinese brush paintings, I feel the colors presented in the Shen Yun show are magnificent with great coordination,” he added.
“Shen Yun has great synchronization between the performance and high-tech animated digital backdrops that have the images of ancient legendary myths and historical stories. It would be great if we could see this kind of performances more often.”
Film Director: ‘I gained a lot of inspiration’
After attending Shen Yun Performing Arts Company’s 2015 premiere in South Korea on April 24, Korean film director Talk Shin said, “I’ve gained a lot of inspiration for my films.”
“Its colors are so beautiful. The program has very rich subject matters.”
An important component of classical Chinese dance is its attention to a dancer’s inner spirit and his or her ability to convey deep emotional expressions.
“As a film director, I’ve got a lot of inspiration from the show. I can go home satisfied,” he said.
“The arrangement of the programs is amazing. The perfect coordination of the digital backdrops is something not easy to come by. We can tell it involves difficult techniques.”
According to the Shen Yun website, “These digital backdrop designs complement and synchronize all aspects of the performance: the characters, color of the costumes, specific dance movements, props, lighting, the story being told, particular notes played by the orchestra, and special audio effects.”
“Shen Yun’s dynamic backdrops are so spectacular that they have deeply touched the bottom of our hearts,” said Talk Shin.
The traditional values, like good-versus-evil, are present in the stories told through Shen Yun’s story-dances as well.
“All those who are concerned about human beings and the world should see the show. Besides, all the people who want to know more about Chinese culture should see the performance as well,” Mr. Talk said.
Reporting by Wang Gahye, Piao Lian and Billy Shyu
New York-based Shen Yun Performing Arts has four touring companies that perform around the world. For more information, visit ShenYunPerformingArts.org.
Epoch Times considers Shen Yun Performing Arts the significant cultural event of our time. We have proudly covered audience reaction since Shen Yun’s inception in 2006