(Clearwisdom.net) Shen Yun Performing Arts raised the curtain on the Asian leg of its 2011 World Tour on January 19 in Busan, Korea. This was the first show in a tour that also visits Daegu and Goyang in South Korea, and later Taiwan, Japan, and Australia. Based in New York, Shen Yun Performing Arts aims, according to its website, to “revive the spirit of traditional Chinese culture” through performances of classical Chinese dance and music.
Curtain call for Shen Yun Performing Arts International Company, after a successful performance in Daegu, Korea on January 21, 2010.
Lee Hong: “I am so impressed. I felt as if I were in a dream, strolling in heaven.”
Lee Hong, great granddaughter of Korea's Emperor Gojong and Empress Myeongseong, is also a model and a movie star.
Lee Hong, a well-known movie star and model, is also the great granddaughter of Korea’s Emperor Gojong and Empress Myeongseong. She attended Shen Yun Performing Arts International Company's first show in Daegu on Jan. 20.
As might be expected, Ms. Lee was dressed fashionably, but aside from being elegant, she was also far from aloof. She explained that she almost didn't make it to the show because she had been shooting a commercial.
But Ms. Lee expressed that she wouldn't have missed this chance. She was so touched by Shen Yun's performance because the atmosphere of the show made her feel as if she were in a dream, a dream that allowed her to experience the 5,000 years of Chinese culture and history.
“The costumes, dance, and orchestral music were very different from Korean art. The show was indeed brilliant and colorful,” said Ms. Lee.
Ms. Lee said she learned a lot from the meaningful lyrics in the Shen Yun songs.
“The lyrics are like the necessary mottos for living. I believe I should inscribe them in my heart,” she said.
The luxurious costumes impressed Ms. Lee as well, especially the one worn by a princess of the Qing Dynasty. “It looks interesting. I want to wear that kind of high heel shoe,” she said.
According to Ms. Lee, she felt particularly free from worry and joyful when she was watching the Plum Blossom dance, and while she was listening to the soloists sing.
It seems that every piece impressed her: “The last program, The Opening of Heaven’s Gates, was fantastic, too!”
What Ms. Lee took away from the show were lessons of love and hope. “For those who are in danger, we need to provide help and rescue. Even when we are in pain, we should never give up hope,” she said.
The dialogue between the two hosts who introduced each piece made the two-and-a-half-hour show attractive and almost too short for Lee. She said that she would come again with her mother and daughter.
Dr. Choi Sangyoon, President of the Busan Art Association: “......perfectly blends timing, images, backdrops, and the super skill of the performers into one.”
Busan Art Association President, Choi Sangyoon, praises Shen Yun saying it brings a brand new type of performing arts.
President of the Busan Art Association, Dr. Choi Sangyoon, saw the debut show of Shen Yun Performing Arts International Company in Busan on Jan. 19. The New York-based Shen Yun gave him a brand new performing arts experience. “The show puts many performing forms together, so in some ways, I think the show is a brand new type of performance, especially as the show perfectly blends timing, images, backdrops, and the super skill of the performers into one.
"Seeing the show is a tremendous experience,” Mr. Choi said.
Mr. Choi is a literature Ph.D., Professor Emeritus of the University of East Asia, and co-representative of the Committees of South Korean choral organizations. He said happily, "Because the performance is very special, I would like to recommend that others see the show."
He praised Shen Yun for its rich diversity of programs, and said the theme expressed overall is very clear. “One of the most symbolic and consistent themes of the show is 'truthfulness, compassion, and forbearance,' universal values in human history.
"Through the programs, we saw that people who are persecuted still insist on their belief; it makes our society think more deeply about this.” Mr. Choi said.
Literary critic and professor inspired by Shen Yun
Zheng Yingzi, literary critic and professor, at Shen Yun Performing Arts in Busan, South Korea.
Awestruck by the magnificent opening of the show, Zheng Yingzi, literary critic and professor in the Department of Korean Literature at the Silla University, praised the opening piece, When the Kings Followed the Creator to the Earth.
Ms. Zheng, the 15th president of the Busan Writers Association as well as vice-director of the Korean Writers General Association, appreciated the presentation of China's 5,000-year-old divinely inspired culture.
“The performance starts with all gods following their Lord to descend to the world," she explained, and ends with those who serve as kings of all nations, establishing cultures throughout the world.
The performance of baritone Qu Yue struck a chord with the professor, the lyrics a reminder for people to let go of fame, profits, lust and hatred. She was so impressed, she made efforts to commit the words to memory.
In 1980, Professor Zheng Yingzi was acclaimed for her comments on modern literature. In 1987, she was awarded the 6th Korea Literary Critics Award, the Busan Culture Award, and the Korean Literature Award of Literary Criticism, and served as President of the Korean Feminist Literary Research Association, and Chair of the Busan Preparation Institute of Feminist Literary Prizes.
Former Daegu Mayor Cao Haining: “A splendid and touching performance.”
After watching the first show in Daegu on Jan. 22, Former Daegu Mayor Cao Haining said, "Shen Yun’s performance has no equal.”
Mr. Cao, 67, who served as Mayor of Daegu for two terms, is the chairman of the 2011 Daegu World Athletics Championship Committee. He attended the Shen Yun show with his wife, because he was attracted by Shen Yun’s great reputation.
Speaking of how he came to attend the show, he delightedly said that he and his wife were told something about this magnificent show in a social gathering. He said, “somebody told us that Shen Yun is a spectacular show illustrating the long Chinese culture and history. Therefore, we are here.”
Referring to the show as amazing, he praised Shen Yun, saying, "From the Shen Yun show, we have appreciated the beauty of Chinese classical dance. In terms of the stage design, the image processing, the ancient-style layout of the stage and the timing of the dance, Shen Yun’s performance is impeccable and has no rival. The backdrops were perfect. Shen Yun is indeed a splendid and touching performance.”
Mr. Cao said there are many connections between the ancient Chinese culture and his culture, and that the five thousand years of Chinese divine culture was perfectly illustrated in the show. That’s why he was so moved. He said, "As the legendary stories Shen Yun presented in the program were based on Chinese history, I was deeply touched.”
The Chinese Communist Government Fails to Stop Performances in Korea
On Jan 16, citizens of Busan, South Korea stood outside in the coldest weather Busan has had in 96 years protesting the Chinese Embassy's attempt to interfere with the U.S.-based Shen Yun Performing Arts tour in South Korea.
The shows planned in Busan, Korea were canceled due to pressure from Chinese consular officials, in spite of the show’s host, the South Korean Falun Dafa Association, having a valid contract for the theater. But after a court ruling delivered seven hours before showtime on Jan. 19, the first of three shows in Busan went ahead as planned.
The South Korean Falun Dafa Association said that this is not the first time the Chinese regime has tried to disrupt Shen Yun performances in South Korea.
In 2007, local organizers had to change theaters three times due to pressure from the Chinese Consulate. That year, the show was ultimately held at the Dom Art Hall in Seoul.
In 2008, due to interference from the Chinese regime, Busan KBS TV station canceled the rental contract. That same year during the Shen Yun performance in Kyung Hee University, Seoul, the Chinese Consulate threatened to deny Chinese visas to all Kyung Hee University students if the school did not cancel the Shen Yun performance.
In 2009, the performance was originally scheduled at the Universal Arts Center in Seoul, but the theater canceled the rental contract. Direct involvement by the Chinese Consulate was once again revealed.
In 2010, while Shen Yun was performing in Daegu, Busan consulate official Zhang Shuhuao demanded that the Daegu City government stop the Shen Yun performance. The city rejected the demand.
Source:
http://www.theepochtimes.com/n2/content/view/49795/
http://www.theepochtimes.com/n2/content/view/49810/
http://www.theepochtimes.com/n2/content/view/49800/
http://www.theepochtimes.com/n2/content/view/49802/
http://www.theepochtimes.com/n2/content/view/49633/
Category: Shen Yun Performing Arts
