SHEN YUN PERFORMING ARTS REVIEWS

Retired Lieutenant Colonel Touched by Shen Yun’s Integrity

SHARE
Retired Lieutenant Colonel Touched by Shen Yun’s Integrity
Guy Workman (R) and his wife, Kirsten, enjoyed Shen Yun’s evening show at the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts on Jan. 28, 2023. Sherry Dong/The Epoch Times

KANSAS CITY, Mo.—Retired Lieutenant Colonel Guy Workman and his wife Kirsten had been looking forward to attending Shen Yun Performing Arts long before the performing arts company arrived in Kansas City.

After the evening performance on Jan. 27, the couple exited the Kauffman Center satisfied that Shen Yun was everything they had hoped it would be.

“I loved it! I had read a lot about it before we came because I was just really looking forward to it,” Mrs. Workman said. “It’s beautiful and it tells a really poignant story. I’m glad to be a part of it.”

Mr. Workman, on the other hand, was impressed by the dedication and discipline of Shen Yun’s performers.

“You can tell the integrity of the performers. You can tell how much they put into it. That kind of work ethic and value transcend so much,” he said. “[It’s] nice to see—in the modern society where we’re bogged down by meaningless politics—real struggles going on but there is also real hope going on.”

Once known as the “Land of the Divine,” the Chinese people believed their civilization was a gift from the heavens. For 5,000 years, China’s culture was built on the values and virtues inspired by the spiritual teachings of Buddhism, Daoism, and Confucianism.

However, after the communist party’s violent takeover in 1949, China’s traditional culture went through decades of systematic destruction.

In 2006, Shen Yun Performing Arts was established in New York by a group of leading artists longing to rediscover China’s lost glory. Since its founding, Shen Yun has been touring around the world every year to showcase, through dance and music, the beauty of China before communism.

This message came through loud and clear for Mr. Workman. “I really enjoy the emotion behind the storytelling. It’s really easy to keep up with the message and just how important it is,” he said.

“Don’t lose your culture, don’t lose your hope! Always keep that a part of your heart.”

Mr. Workman added that though he is not Chinese, he noticed that there are a lot of shared values across different cultures. “Life, respect, art, hope—there were a lot of stories about family and the connection to family. It’s cross-cultural and enduring.”

Referring to the persecution Shen Yun faced at the hands of the communist party, Mr. Workman said “[there are] definitely people out there suffering but I think hope [comes] from positive storytelling, hanging on to the culture, and not losing the traditional values.”

“It’s like the Odyssey,” Mr. Workman reflected, “Odysseus never lost his true self even through all the struggles. He finally made it at [the journey’s end.]”

Reporting by Sherry Dong and Jennifer Tseng.
The Epoch Times is a proud sponsor of Shen Yun Performing Arts. We have covered audience reactions since Shen Yun’s inception in 2006.
Related Topics
shen yun
SHARE