(Clearwisdom.net) An enthusiastic and appreciative audience welcomed Shen Yun Performing Arts Company at the San Francisco War Memorial Opera House in San Francisco, California, on July 23-25, 2010.

Former 3M Company national sales and marketing director, Barbara Talberg, talked about her experience of Shen Yun.

"I thought it was absolutely incredible ... I loved how [the company] represented the Monkey King," Ms. Talberg enthused. "I was just so excited to find out how Buddhism came into China ... It was just spectacular.

"I've studied Chinese oriental philosophies since I was 14. I love Chinese culture--I love the thought, I love the philosophy," she said.

Ms. Talberg thought the performers did "a superb job" of exposing the senseless persecution of the spiritual practice Falun Gong in China. "I thought that was superbly done."

She was referring to the dance set, "Nothing Can Block the Divine Path," where a mother and her daughter, performing Falun Gong exercises in a park, are separated, torn apart by police who have orders to break the will of those who follow the peaceful practice. However, beings in the heavens are watching.

"It was wonderful because even though there was separation and loss, there was still love," Ms Talberg said.

Commenting on the Shen Yun Orchestra, she said, "I do wish there was a DVD of just the music ... it would be wonderful to listen to."

Her friend Chip, who also attended the show, agreed.

"The erhu with just the two strings--that was just amazing. It really brought out the emotion. When you normally hear that instrument--I've gone to Asia a few times--it 's not rich. The way she performed was fantastic. It just drew emotion out of the instrument. I thought it was just fantastic."

Continuing, Ms Talberg said, "The costumes are just fantastic. I liked the ones that looked like the lily pads, with all the greens and everything. The first performance of the second part of the show. They were pink and green.

"I like the way the costumes are color-coordinated with the backdrop. I think that was superb. It was spectacular!"

She said that the digital backdrop added "flavor" to the show, adding, "As a Westerner who doesn't understand all the Chinese context, I think [it gave] a good context.

"[The show] did a great job of representing the different regions. Like the Miao with all the silver and the Tibetans ... I love it all," she concluded.

Shen Yun: An "Eye-opening and Educational" Show

Marina and Scott learned a lot about Chinese culture by watching Shen Yun Performing Arts.

Also enjoying the show were Scott, who works in the finance department of a Silicon Valley high-tech computer company, and Marina, who works in sales for Skyline Homes. They both thoroughly enjoyed the show.

Scott gave his impressions of the show, saying, "I actually was impressed. This is all brand new. I'm actually half Chinese, believe it or not, and know zero about my culture. That's part of the allure, to learn a little bit. I had no clue what to expect.

"I was really quite surprised at the level--the skill ... the musicianship--the creativity is incredible, to see some of the various cultural aspects of the Chinese culture."

Continuing he said, "I particularly liked "In the Miao Village"--dances with the headdresses and such, silver jewelry--I really can't describe it ... that was really quite impressive."

He added, "I love the flowing silk--the costumes and the way they were incorporated into the dance. I particularly liked the drummers--and the handkerchiefs.

"Even the acrobatics--I was mentioning that in the first male scene with the archery--near the end they had some dancers doing flips across the stage. We were really close to the stage. I could barely hear their feet when they landed. I mean it was just incredible! Unbelievable, unbelievable!"

Scott marveled at the different array of performances that Shen Yun had to offer, including a dance set exposing the persecution of Falun Gong practitioners in China, today.

"Religious, spiritual? I guess to a certain degree--you can't see some of that in modern day China ... . I've read in the papers that certain religious groups are being persecuted in China, they don't have the freedoms to express themselves like this. I respect the story lines a lot. I was really quite pleasantly surprised. I really didn't know what to expect."

He came to realize that many dance forms were derived from classical Chinese dance, including, the acrobatics and flips in modern gymnastics.

"I had no idea! That was eye-opening. I didn't realize the variety of dance within the various regions of Chinese culture--I had no idea."

Both Scott and Marina also appreciated orchestra and its blend of Western and Eastern influences, with Scott remarking, "It is really quite spectacular. That was actually quite nice."

Scott had a lot to say about the performance, "Nothing Can Block the Divine Path," which showed a mother and daughter being arrested for practicing Falun Gong in contemporary China.

He explained, "You definitely feel for the mother and the daughter, the family in the park. This was a pretty bold representation of governmental crackdown of religious freedom--put it that way. It was pretty stark.

"And then the liberation at the end. It definitely does fill you with a sense of hope and at the same time in recognition that there's a real world out there, too.

"Maybe that's the way that culture survives--through the arts, and telling the stories and traditions, until there's a chance for that to flourish, maybe in the future."

Continuing Scott said he respected Shen Yun "a lot" for its courage in exposing China's human rights abuses.

"In the 12th and 21st centuries, there's been a lot of repression of certain ethnic and religious groups in the world, using quite a lot of force and finality, especially in the last hundred years."

He said in China "the old ways of tradition are disregarded" and keeping people fearful is "absolutely" a powerful tool of control and "presenting it in an artistic environment is definitely another way to get that message across."

Marina found Shen Yun "very moving." "The costumes and the choreography were almost magical," she said.

Scott concluded, "I guess this was eye-opening and educational. At the same time it was very enjoyable. It's an effective presentation."

Source:

http://www.theepochtimes.com/n2/content/view/39755/
http://www.theepochtimes.com/n2/content/view/39758/