CANBERRA, Australia—As the many ancient Chinese fables and tales cleverly unfolded on stage during Shen Yun's performance on Tuesday, March 31, the audience was spellbound by the majestic beauty of the music and dances.
Mrs. Brown, a former dancer, thoroughly enjoyed watching the elegant dancers glide around the stage as if they were floating.
"It seems to me that a lot of the dancers put their toes first and then their heels, and the Chinese dancers put their heel down first, and then their toe. It creates a whole different movement, and that’s what gives them that beautiful glide. So it’s just really interesting to be able to see and compare a few of the differences.
"I found it very interesting to see how similar the dance is, but there’s a lot of technical differences. For example the foot placement is quite different. It’s been really refreshing to watch, really interesting, and I’ve really enjoyed it.
Mr. Brown, who doesn't usually enjoy watching ballet, enjoyed it more than he expected to.
"I didn’t think I’d like it, but I do. I like it better than, say, the ballet. My favourite dance was the flower one [The Udumbara's Bloom]. It just seems very serene. I just liked all the colours.
"Beautiful, absolutely beautiful. The costumes set it off … they dance very well and I suppose the costumes are like an extension of them. I'm very impressed by the whole choreography," he added.
Formerly a highland and ballet dancer, Mrs. Brown appreciated seeing so many different Chinese ethnicities represented and found the variety refreshing.
Both Mr. and Mrs. Brown had seen Chinese opera before, but the two tenors, Jiansheng Yang and Guan Guimin, surpassed all their expectations.
"Oh, we were very impressed with the tenor! I just thought, 'Wow!' I just closed my eyes and listened. … I just thought it was nice to hear the Chinese words coming through in a more melodic tone," explained Mrs. Brown.
They also enjoyed seeing characters from traditional, familiar Chinese fables.
"I’m familiar with some of the tales, and that makes it really nice. It’s like going to the ballet and knowing the story. I knew about the Monkey King [The Monkey King Triumphs], and a few of the other ones, so it’s good to know what’s going on," said Mrs. Brown.
Of all dances in the show, both Mr. and Mrs. Brown agreed that they liked the dance The Udumbara's Bloom the most. Legend has it that the udumbara flower is a sacred Buddhist flower that only blooms every 3,000 years.
"I just like the movements and the feel of the dance. There’s a couple of beautiful little dancers in the front row, who danced really well. You could see the flower unfolding, it was done very well," said Mrs. Brown.
"I loved it. I like the colour and everyone looks like they’re really enjoying what they’re doing, and that is great," said Mr. Brown.
This article was written with NTDTV, a media partner of The Epoch Times. Chani Blue contributed to this report.
The Epoch Times is a proud sponsor of the Shen Yun Performing Arts 2009 World Tour. For more information please visit ShenYunPerformingArts.org
