Shen Yun performed at the Sakai Performing Arts Center in Osaka, Japan, from Jan. 13 to 14. Audience members praised the artists’ exceptional skills.
Kazuhiro Takeuchi, a hospital director, said: “the music and dance are really wonderful. I’m very touched. The dance is both elegant and full of vitality. It’s really wonderful.”
Sayu Arakawa, a dancer, said: “these skills and programs can only be achieved by Shen Yun. That’s the quality of a dance company that can tour the world.” She added: “I’m very moved and thought it’s admirable. I feel like my heart is surging.”
Hideji Kaneoka, a chairman of an IT company, said: “I’m very touched. The backdrop is great, and the dance is excellent. It’s incredible to have such a performance in Japan. It’s marvelous. I’m amazed by five thousand years of Chinese history, and hope it gets carried on.”
Shuichi Matsumura, a representative from Rotary International, said: “[the dancers] have superb physical abilities. They not only coordinate with the orchestra, but also integrate with the images on the backdrop.” He added: “this is the first time I’ve seen such a performance, it’s very highly skilled and I’m moved.”
Shen Yun portrays stories and legends from 5,000 years of Chinese culture through dance. Specifically, Classical Chinese dance, which features complex flips, spins, and tumbling techniques. Based in New York, Shen Yun artists train year-round to prepare for their world tour and that effort was not left unnoticed.
Tamaki Kiji, a director, said: “whether it’s their jumping abilities or splitting, you can see that the actors have been trained hard.” She added: “the initial water sleeve dance was very gorgeous, and I was deeply moved by the feeling that the actors danced together to create a scene.”
Mr. Matsumura also said: “the dynamics of the dance, the softness of the body, and the sense of rhythm are all outstanding. The actors barely made any sound when they jumped on the stage, which surprised me.” He added: “it felt like they were defying gravity. It’s like dancing in a world with only half the gravity. Such extraordinary jumping ability is really amazing.”
“I originally thought it was based on ballet, but later I learned that these techniques are derived from Chinese Classical dance,” said Miss Arakawa. “It was interesting to see such a unique dance. (The techniques) are very difficult and require strong jumping ability. And it takes hard training to make no sound when landing, I’m so touched.”
Takashi Fukushima, an executive at an industrial company, said: “[the artists] must have gone through hard training until they successfully appeared on stage. The performance covered rich artistic and historical connotations, the perfect integration with the backdrop moved me very much.”
Hideji Kaneoka, the head of an IT company, said Shen Yun reminded him that human beings are precious and traditional culture is the foundation of mankind. He said: “[the show] reminds us not to forget the pride of being born as a human being. Nowadays, everything is modernized and modernized. He added: “although I’m also in the computer industry, modernization and AI can be good, but they are a bit worrying. We must cherish traditional culture. Traditional culture is the foundation of mankind, and I hope it gets protected going forward.”
Miss Arakawa said: “the program contains many ways of thinking and ideas that are no longer found in modern society and modern people. These should be passed down properly and must not be lost. This will all tie into the future.”
“[The performance] is very powerful. I rarely watch performances like this. [In Japan] there hasn’t been any good news from the beginning of this year, but [Shen Yun] has given us courage.” He added: “I hope that people who suffered from the earthquake disaster [in Japan] can also receive this courage.”
“Even if it [traditional Chinese culture] is rebuked in China, it should be passed down,” said Miss Arakawa. “I hope it continues. Everyone should come and watch the performance.”
Shen Yun’s next stop in Japan will be Tokyo.
NTD News, Osaka, Japan
