ATLANTA—Celena Brown, entrepreneur and business owner, sat front and center at the world premiere of the all-new Shen Yun Performing Arts 2023 show at the Atlanta Symphony Hall on Dec. 24, 2022.
The Christmas Eve performance was met with such high demand that even after tickets sold out, additional seats had to be opened up last minute to accommodate extra audience members.
“It’s the perfect way to celebrate Christmas. You’re learning culture and you’re giving back, and you’re studying, it’s an incredible way to spend the day in the arts,” she said.
She urged others to see Shen Yun for themselves and “to allow it to resonate, to relax while you’re watching it, to become the art, to let the art become you. To let the story become a part of us.”
Shen Yun was founded in New York in 2006, and in no time became the world’s top classical Chinese dance company, reviving an art form that was once nearly lost. Its mission is to revive 5,000 years of Chinese civilization, sharing with the world the beauty of China before communism.
“So far, it is magical, the costumes are absolutely beautiful,” she said. Ms. Brown marveled at the cohesion of the performers and the perfection of each costume. “And of course, the music is absolutely gorgeous—and the timing!”
“It is a very impressive show, impressive talent,” she said. “The performers are incredible. They are clearly dedicated to this art, and with many many thousands of hours, clearly. They are very beautiful.”
The beauty accompanied a learning experience for Ms. Brown.
“We’ve learned a lot about the culture, about China before communism, about true China, about the history of China,” she said.
China was once known as the Celestial Empire, and its culture was believed to be divinely inspired. Through dance vignettes, Ms. Brown glimpsed the depth of this culture.
“I love the traditional dance, the movement, the traditional dress, the stories of the divine, and how the divine has supported humanity, that we are here as humans to save all life,” she said.
“I think it was perfect. A perfect story for the beauty of divine beings dancing,” Ms. Brown said.
“It’s different and beautiful to see and enjoy,” said Mr. Bueno, who is head of finance, control, and business transactions for EY’s Consulting practice in Brazil. He had seen advertisements throughout the city and thought it would make for a fun winter celebration, and the show did not disappoint.
Shen Yun is the world’s top classical Chinese dance company, and Mr. Bueno said he enjoyed the stories and themes behind the dances as much as the dance itself.
“Those were the things that impressed me the most because they are different,” he said. “It’s really, really entertaining but also helps us to learn a little bit more about Chinese culture. It was fantastic.”
But Mr. Bueno also experienced something he felt was shared and universal.
“We always believe in something that’s above what’s on earth, right? That’s something that is similar in every culture,” he said.
Also in the audience was Titus Gambrell, a retired health executive, who said he saw in Shen Yun “a message of hope.”
“A little unanticipated, but it touches a lot of the senses—the visual the sound … and the spirit,” he said. “To me, it stimulates all of that. It also compelled me to have a broader understanding of the Chinese spiritual experience as well.”
Gambrell said the performance connected him with a spirit that transcended religious divides.
“I think it’s what I’m seeing, feeling, it does touch deep within one’s spirit, which is the soul,” he said. “[It’s a] message of hope and love and oneness.”
Reporting by NTD, Ronald Ree, and Frank Liang
From The Epoch Times
