Shen Yun performed in Eugene, Oregon, at the Hult Center for the Performing Arts on Oct. 16 and 17. Spiritually based stories touched the audience members.
“I saw a lot of golden threads of truth intertwine between what was presented and what I believed all my life, … that origin of divine truth that goes through all of our beliefs,” said John Hayes, a physician.
“The theme is that humans have this desire and passion that is to the Creator, is divine right? We may have lost that, but we need to bring it back,” said Ernie Khaw, an engineering program manager and president of ForgetNot International.
Much of China’s traditional culture is divinely inspired.
But the Chinese Communist Party sees traditional culture as a threat and seeks to destroy it. Shen Yun’s mission is to revive it, bringing the audience back to a China before communism.
“We as people, when we’re born, we have a connection with creation,” Khaw added. “But when commun[ism] comes in, it kind of pushes away a lot of things that come in our heart. I think it’s a lost value.”
“I just think with everything that has happened with the rise of communism in China and the suppression of creativity and arts, it’s really important. And it’s exciting to see that it’s being promoted through this type of an event,” said Connie Kloha, a community relations director at Cascade Living Group.
“The world’s coming to confusion and a horrific end if we don’t change our ways, both physically and spiritually, and that, yes, there is a divine being that can help if we’ll just listen and go back to our roots,” said Hayes.
They believe Shen Yun encourages future generations to preserve traditional values and appreciate what they have.
“Five thousand years is a long time. I mean, you know, here in the United States, we talk a matter of two or three hundred years. Chinese—you know, 5,000 years. That’s wonderful. And people like to know culture and heritage and everything. And I think that’s very appreciated,” said Mark Patrzik, general manager at SCA Performance.
“I think that technology has hurt the family unit across the world and everything because we’re paying attention to things that are irrelevant, because the most relevant thing is your family and your culture in your community,” said Patrzik.
“It’s very important for my children,” said Khaw. “Soon they’re going to have their own families and kids to understand, to appreciate how much we have here … People don’t have freedom and suffering and all these things in the countries that we see. So it’s very important for the young generation to understand this kind of perspective.”
NTD News, Eugene, Oregon
