(Clearwisdom.net) Shen Yun Performing Arts New York Company performed at New York City's David H. Koch Theater, Lincoln Center from January 6 to 16, 2011. Shen Yun performances are based on traditional Chinese spiritual values and principles.
A message of peace, hope and unity
Dr. Jeffrey Morrison, who has been featured on many TV shows
The vocalists of Shen Yun Performing Arts delivered performances that awed Dr. Jeffrey Morrison on January 12.
“I must say that I’ve never heard voices like that on stage before—it was really outstanding,” he said. “I still have goose bumps going up and down my spine.”
Dr. Morrison was impressed not just by the unique voices of the operatic singers, but the meaning contained in the songs.
“With the words in the background, you could not only read what the meaning was, you could feel it in the delivery of the performance. You could feel the performance.”
A medical doctor with a holistic approach, Dr. Morrison has a clinic on Fifth Avenue that specializes in integrative medicine and a nutritional approach. He has been featured as a health specialist on The Discovery Channel.
“I feel like I know the East so much better than I ever have before,” Dr. Morrison said. “I think the message is of peace and hope and unity … That’s really what Shen Yun is about.”
"I thought Shen Yun was a spectacular show. It transformed the stage into a history lesson." said Dr. Morrison. "I was so thrilled to learn about these new stories that I’d never heard before."
Dr. Morrison also said he was amazed by the talent of the Shen Yun performers.
“I was amazed by the performances. Every single one of the performers was so talented. They really gave it their all, you could see it 100 percent. They really brought it out on stage."
Continuing, he explained that the performers "were some of the finest that I’ve ever seen at Lincoln Center ... they really accumulated the best performers from all across the world."
Before leaving Dr. Morrison added, "I’m glad that I was here ... I had a fantastic night tonight. I think the dancers gave an amazing performance ... It made me feel like there’s really a lot of hope in the world—so I know there is."
"A renaissance of traditional arts"
David Lu, spokesperson for the Christian Democratic Party of China saw the New York-based Shen Yun perform on Thursday. Mr. Lu was full of praise for the performances.
“Shen Yun is the one and only show that reveals the meaning of life and the position of human beings in the universe,” said Mr. Lu. “In a time of corruptness, recession and depression, Shen Yun comes to the Lincoln Center, the world class stage, and brings us the best performing arts and culture."
Mr. Lu added that he believes Shen Yun will inspire a "renaissance of traditional arts."
"It [Shen Yun] also points out a new direction for painting, opera and other art forms, as Shen Yun shows that only faith for the divine can lead to excellent cultural and art work,” he said.
He also noted that the difference between Shen Yun and performing arts that come from mainland China is the inner quality.
“Lots of things can be faked. The Communist Party slanders divine figures and that brings danger over the whole nation. Their performances are vulgar in nature. Though on the surface it looks like that the Chinese Communist Party is in its prosperity, its fate will actually be very miserable.”
Mr. Lu sees a great deal of benefit in experiencing Shen Yun. He believes that those who see the show will gain "guidance, inspiration, good luck, and rewards.”
Attorney sees Shen Yun as a revival of Chinese culture
Mr. Oltarsh was taken with Shen Yun's full complement of dance and music.
As former attorney for the New York City Ballet for 40 years, William H. Oltarsh has seen his share of performances at the Lincoln Center, the ballet company’s home. When he saw Shen Yun Performing Arts at the Center’s David. H. Koch Theatre on Thursday night, he was clearly deeply moved.
To Mr. Oltarsh, the values and bearing of Shen Yun stood in stark contrast to the character of the communist regime ruling contemporary China.
“It seems to me that [Shen Yun] expresses a feeling of relationships and also emotional tenderness,” he said.
“All the qualities in here are what are so lacking in the government in China, unfortunately," he said.
"The hardness and bitterness, unpleasant government, and the harshness of it, is all demonstrated here."
But the traditional Chinese culture Shen Yun is imbued with "is a totally different culture, which is part of China too. Maybe one day people will recognize it and return to [China's] true civilization, that's what I think.”
Shen Yun’s mission it to revive China’s deep sense of values, beauty, and traditions that existed during most of the country’s 5,000-year history—but that the communist regime has actively tried to stamp out.
To Mr. Oltarsh, Shen Yun bespoke of the future return to those traditional ideals in China, for China “to be a civilization again, and to be tender, and good to people, and sort of enriching and ebullient and vivacious.”
The attorney elaborated further on the values he saw portrayed by Shen Yun: “Feelings for others, relationships, caring for the young and for the traditions. All the values of erudition and culture and all the past the culture has, which is totally ignored … in the past 50 years."
He contrasted these positive values demonstrated on stage with that of the behavior of the communist regime.
"This is a cultural civilization and this is displayed here,” he said, referring to Shen Yun.
In addition to Shen Yun's profound messages, Mr. Oltarsh was taken with the performance's full complement of dance and music.
Shen Yun uses Classical Chinese dance, a rich and rigorous dance form, to present ancient legends, scenes from ethnic minority groups, plus moments from modern China. Shen Yun also features prominent Chinese bel canto soloists and a full orchestra.
“The music is very mellifluous, just very lyrical. The singing was very beautiful,” he said.
The dancing, he described as “very athletic and very beautiful."
“Very, very, very light and supple—and just beautiful. It was really beautiful.”
What he noticed was, that “the emphasis here is not so much on the individuals but on the group, the whole community. That’s my impression. All of the dancers were very excellent, but there no one is just chosen to stand out—it's a community, it's really a community. There's no single star, the whole group is a star.”
"It was just a beautiful performance,” he said.
Category: Shen Yun Performing Arts
