Learning from traditions can be insightful, especially for theatergoers in Columbus, Ohio, who got to watch Shen Yun Performing Arts showcase China’s 5,000 years of culture on stage.
“I loved it. It was inspiring, it was beautiful. The message was incredible, the music was powerful, and the dancing was exquisite,” said Robin Ulrich, a ballroom dancer who was the co-champion of the 2021 Gold and Silver Smooth in her age category for USA Dance.
“There are things that come from the past, the ancient times, that are very powerful, and I think that we can learn from them as we move through today,” added Sean Cotter, director of engineering at Nestle Marysville.
Ancient Chinese people believed their culture was a gift from the divine, and that music, medicine, calligraphy, language, and clothing were brought down from the heavens.
“I like that idea of thinking about a higher power as well. I think there’s something that binds us together, that can lift us up, and having faith in that and the tradition that comes with that I think is something that we ought to remember in the current moment,” said Vivek Ramaswamy, entrepreneur and author of “Woke, Inc.” and “Nation of Victims.”
Since communism took over the country, China’s once-flourishing culture, including its traditional beliefs, was nearly destroyed. Shen Yun also portrays stories that are inspired by modern events.
One example is the current persecution of Falun Dafa, a spiritual discipline rooted in traditional Chinese culture.
“I really liked the good over evil, and that kind of thing. … The tragic story at the end with the organ transplant of the surgeon was very moving, but thankfully the Buddha came in and saved the day,” said Anthony “Tony” Kington, lawyer and partner at Chester Willcox & Saxbe, LLP.
Cardiologist Robert Drake said the faith portrayed in the modern pieces of Falun Dafa practitioners being persecuted in today’s China stood out to him.
“Everything can be taken from us except our faith, unless we let it. And it is only in faith that we sometimes get up every day and accomplish what we need to,” he said.
Ulrich added: “I think that the message of hope and peace and compassion was very effective. It came through in every piece, every dance that was danced, and it just made us feel as if we were all one culture, one world—that we all had a place to gather.”
