Shen Yun Performing Arts

I am not particular like dance or watching performing arts. However, this show goes beyond my imagination. As a Chinese immigrant, I have seen nothing in China like this. This ancient wisdom, culture and tradition have been lost in China today for so long. I feel lucky to be able to see the real Chinese culture here in New York. I heard they also travel all around the world. I will recommend all my friends and family to watch the show. It is beautiful, energetic, touching and positive.

To insidiously disguise a Chinese religious cult’s far right agenda by deceiving the audience into thinking they were going to be entertained and informed in Ancient Chinese culture is beyond a scam. To make matters worse is that Shen Yun is a cheezy childish Disneyesque collage of disconnected one act performances of repetitive carbon copy dance numbers, with a remainder of vaudevillian acts of fantasies and folklore, mixed with propaganda.
It is no wonder why the Chinese government has banned this production. Fulon Gong is a dark age religious ideology that opposes homosexuality, interracial relationships, modern medicine, evolution and science in general. It is a Chinese equivalent to the KKK juxtaposed with Scientology. The religious cult’s intolerant values and belief systems are hypocritical at best but the deceptive manner in which it attempts to force its ideology on audiences is an utter con.
The only thing one takes away from this shoddy propagandized performance is anger and a wish that the Red Army will triumph and execute the members of the cult. Ironically, the deceptive scam that Fulon Gong has conjured up, has resulted in the direct opposite reaction that it was aiming for.
To add insult to injury, is that the Baltimore Hippodrome has aided and abetted the cult and it’s propaganda, along with poorly executed production to be a venue on their stage, which subsequently has scammed their patrons.

False advertisement. This is not a cultural dance for your entertainment. It is just a propaganda and promotion of falun gong ideology. I am aware of falun gong and the atrocities they faced from the Chinese government before watching Shen Yun. However, after watching this, I have less sympathy and respect for Falun Gong. It seems very hypocritical that they are portraying themselves as victims while their pathetic attempt of hiding their ulterior motives and forcing their ideologies disguised as Chinese cultural dance to unsuspecting audience. They should respect that other people have different beliefs and religion rather than shoving it into the audience on how Falun Gong is THE only way until the end of times. Very very sad that by doing this, they are no different than their oppressors who persecuted them because of their different beliefs.
The dances were not even accurate as they portray it as dances from different remote regions in China. I regret wasting my money on this. I would have been ok if they have mentioned Falun Gong in the promotional materials (even just as a fine print would do) so audience know what they have paid for and where their money is going (to shove falun gong beliefs on others).

So we saw the Shen Yun was doing a live show in Providence. It was advertised as classical Chinese Dance and had live music.
It was visually beautiful. The music was lovely. Some of the dances were fabulous, especially the fan dance. The dance numbers were uneven but we were willing to overlook that.
What we were not expecting was propaganda. Interspersed between the dance numbers was opera which was translated into English. The singer shouted out about Science was a lie, Atheism is Satan’s Lie, and assorted other goodies including evolution was a lie, and that the followers of Falum Dafa were leading the way. Some of the dances were mini stories about Falun Dafa and its followers.
So a mixed bag, and I can’t recommend it. I re-​looked at the literature on this program to make sure that I didn’t miss something, but no, I hadn’t. I was disappointed.

My daughter and I went to Shen Yun yesterday after years of seeing copius amounts of advertising. I looked on their website and watched the trailer, but should have read further reviews because boy was I shocked to find out the hard way that this traveling show is really just one large propaganda effort for the Falun Gong sect.
The operatic interludes are painful to begin with because the singing is just so bad– but when you start to read all of the lyrics (projected on the giant screen behind) it gets a little uncomfortable. «Evolution has no basis in reality… beware the red beast… we offer the truth… atheism is destroying the world»…and on and on. I am so grateful that my daughter is 4 and can’t read yet.
The dance vignettes were also peppered with sociopolitical skits about the evil of communism and the «hope of the future» for the Falun Gong folks. All portrayed in a childish Disney-​fied good vs. evil way.
And the dance performances themselves? Flashy, boring, repetitive. All framed by two creepy hosts with permasmiles and wooden voices. The choreography is so bland and endlessly repetitive. The costumes change but the dances don’t.
As the audience was constantly reminded, the Falun Gong followers are persecuted in China but in America they can speak freely. Yes, freedom of speech extends to everyone whether we agree with their beliefs or not but we should also have the freedom of choice– to decide whether we want to sit through 2 hours of thinly veiled propaganda or not. Shen Yun vastly misrepresents their mission and show and that is really not acceptable. Most people I spoke to felt duped, used and pretty angry.
We were given comp tickets to this show. If I had paid face price of $ 200 I would have been irate and demanded my money back. Which many people did.

Are you into the Monkey King? I’m really into the Monkey King – the wildly powerful yet mischievous and light-​hearted Chinese deity.
Every year, and my wife and I have been going to Shen Yun for years, there’s an episode (one of the many vignettes that make up each Shen Yun performance) from Journey to the West. To the uninitiated, that’s one of the timeless classics of ancient Chinese literature. This is one of the things that Shen Yun does exceedingly well, that is, set ancient Chinese legends and stories to music and dance.
This year they outdid themselves with Monkey’s journey to the undersea palace of the dragon king. Years ago Shen Yun pioneered a technique I’ve seen developed in other shows since: giant projected animations that create theatrical possibilities that no physical set can. This year the Monkey King dances flawlessly with his brethren, jumps into the screen, flies through the heavens and into the ocean, emerging back on stage to dance in the dragon king’s palace among the king’s entourage. Seamless, sublime, and enthralling, the orchestra and the dance – we were both carried away to those ancient lands, and to many others throughout the night. Kudos!

The Shen Yun Orchestra gives me a thrill. One of my favorite things in life is when I hear an excellent live musical performance, and the music stays with me for a while. That happened for this. I’ve been loving music since (I guess infancy, thank you, family for teaching me to love it) and the music of Shen Yun is extraordinary.
This theater has so many great aspects. All the seats are good, and quite comfortable and plus, and it has sparkly Murano glass chandeliers and a mural of the nine Muses. Great acoustics, great air (it has some kind of high tech perfect air handling system, I read). I saw Shen Yun there last night, opening night. The orchestra was so very good. It seemed like the rest of the audience thought so too – people cheered when the MC introduced them. The standing ovation at the end started when he acknowledged the orchestra again. All their music is composed anew for each year’s show, the program book said. Amazing artistry. Really, really found it beautiful.
The parking lot is so designed that you can park and enter the theater without getting rained on, a nice touch.
Back to the performance – one of the dances, «The Steadfast Heart» brought a tear to my eye. It was poignant, graceful, and so powerfully acted.
That mischievous Monkey King made me smile, when he made things difficult for the undersea Dragon King and his turtle, shrimp, and other marine warriors. Funny! Tons of action!
Fascinated by the costumes, especially by the Fairies of the Sea, creating waves with long cloth fans, and by the (I guess, LED lights?) in a dance of flowers. Remarkable theater! Very creative, and full of feeling.
I have season tickets for the opera, and am a big fan of this venue. Even though it’s not near my home (as the Fox was) its easy to get to and easy to deal with. They make it smooth, although you can get into a jam in the parking deck when it’s time to leave. My solution is to dawdle in the beautiful lobby and admire the remarkable architecture, have a chat with your companions. There are all kind of little nooks and plush red benches there, you can hang out.
PS, been a fan of Shen Yun since it first started coming here in 2006. I look forward it every year. Nothing else like it!

We went to see Shen Yun at the Smith Center in Las Vegas. It was such a extraordinary and extravagant show that we decided to see it twice! We wanted to see everything that we might have missed the first time. The costumes, scenery, choreography, and orchestra were superb! The classical music and dance from ancient China is something that everyone should experience. It was defiantly a very unique performance.
The dance and musical pieces transport you to such a relaxed and heavenly dimension. The backdrops were so well done and interacted with the dancers in certain pieces. The costumes were gorgeous and the colors of the whole show were outstanding. I really cant say enough good things about Shen Yun.
Shen Yun gave us the opportunity to explore the wonders of ancient Chinese culture. We will defiantly be going back next year!

I thought Shen Yun was an amazing Chinese cultural performing arts show full of great music, soprano and dance. All the complaining about Falun Dafa propaganda expressed here sounds ridiculous. China doesn’t allow freedom of speech. It’s a beautiful thing it can be done here.
The message was more expression of illustrating a current prevalence in communist China forbidding practice. I did not feel in any sort of persuasiveness in the show to push Falun Dafa. The persecution is alive and well with thousands of organs being harvested illicitly from practicioners caught by the government. It’s awareness, and this happens to be part of the cultural theme. There is no freedom of speech, religion and even dance in China. I applaud them for seizing the opportunity to do so here.
As for the show itself, the costumes, hair and make up were carnivalesqe and beautiful. The dancing, handling of props and talent was most impressive! The video screen in the background was a great way to show flying without going «Cirque du Soleil». The live orchestra, soprano, and solo instrumentals playing displayed true talent. I thought the Mandarin speaking hostess and host who spoke mostly English were appropriate. They were both charismatic and entertaining. Who cares if he wasn’t Chinese. They both did an excellent job narrating.
The show was 2 hours long with a 15 min. intermission. Yes, they were expensive regardless. I got box seats for $ 300 each at the War Memorial in SF and wanted to see the entire stage all the way to the back, sit comfortably and get in and out of my seat easily. They change the show a bit every year, but it’s more a one time thing to enjoy and appreciate Chinese cultural arts.
If you haven’t seen the show and have an appreciation for cultural performing arts, it’s a great Chinese cultural freedom of expression through great song and dance!

Hidden «propagandas» — hiding behind what could be a beautiful dance performance. Never mentioned in the advertising material that the organization will deliver their own propaganda message for about ¹⁄₃ of the show.
We went to see what we thought was just a Chinese dance performance in San Jose, CA during New Year weekend. For the dance part was OK, not great, good for someone has no experience with Chinese dance. I grew up seeing a lot, so I knew the difference.
It’s a two-​part, approx. an hour each dance show. However, the first ²⁄₃ of the each half is different types of Chinese dance which was well performed. Then, the last ¹⁄₃ part of each half is the propaganda part from the organizer. It has nothing to do with Chinese traditional dance like they advertised. Very, very disappointed. We couldn’t stay for the 2^nd half, too annoyed. We considered that was false advertisement. Kind of like: imagine that you go to see Russian Ballet and in the middle of the show it starts showing how great is communism in some sort of dance/​singing method. How happy would you be.

No political agenda. I am a cosmopolitan New Yorker, I live in Queens and can say thank you in six different languages. I was gifted a ticket and I went in with an open mind, since Mainland China can be an oppressive government, trying to knit together several unwilling (Tibet, Mongolia, Taipei) lands. As such, I expected some political protests, since this troupe is banned in China. I’m cool with that, since this is the Land o’ Liberty. Let them protest cultural and religious persecution… it is the essence of Art. I learned about the issues while being entertained; never a bad thing.
However, Shen Yun was a real let-​down in terms of presentation quality. It’s actually a bit boring. The projection screen/​stage backdrop is blown up so large that the digital images projected can be grainy and cheap-​looking. The choreography of the traditional dances is athletic, yet sadly narrow and repetitive. Some of the dances even have cheesy «storytelling» pantomime. Not awe-inspiring…nor spiritually moving, just barely pleasing to the average Western eye… mostly dull and uninspiring.
The performance of 20 dances was in the Avery Fisher Hall/​Koch Theatre, a beautiful space. There is a vibrant, live orchestra. The tickets are pricey, but do not include box seats on the wings and upper levels… all seats are good. There are bilingual introductions, a la «Our Town» from two smarmy hosts on stage right, to allow time for set and costume changes. The narrators are the ones offering the drone of political commentary in their introductions, which can turn off some patrons.

The performers were talented, the costumes pretty, the orchestra was great, but it is very repetitious. The dance style is monotonous, and not very stimulating, mentally. I’m not sure if that’s an issue with the choreographers, or just a limitation of the style.
There were a couple moments where I thought, Oh, that was cool. This made me wonder what true, historic, Chinese dance performances were like… were they really like this?
I’m not sure how it could be improved upon, because it is what it is. The use of the video screen was interesting.
It’s not worth $ 60 per ticket to see it. Maybe $ 10 or $ 15, but you’d have to really want to spend a couple hours in there, plus travel time and parking.
Too many dancers on stage for me, also…
I learned, once again, I prefer more experimental, modern dance. This did not hold my attention.

I wish I had thought to look at Unilocal before purchasing the tickets and attending. It was boring at best, political propaganda worse, religious proselytizing at worst. The dancing was similar throughout. The MCs awkward, rehearsed, unnatural. What made it even more strange were the Caucasian female dancers, and one was even a principal dancer so often up front. Are there seriously not enough mediocre Asian dancers to fill the dance company? And if there are not, at least use the Caucasians as filler in the back of the stage.
Please save your money!

Chinese Jesus destroys Shanghai in the end (2016) … Kinda wish he would killed all of us in the audience as well… Just to end the pain of watching this weird propaganda production of Falun-​Dafa poo-​poo play.

I was ridiculed and utterly confused with all the negative reviews about Shen Yun which actually helped. I and my wife went with low expectations and we were pleasantly surprised. Yes there was a bit of political and religious agenda, but then art is a form of expression and I don’t think it undermines the artistry, finesse and hard work of all the performers. I found them top notch and very well synced. But the icing on the cake has got to be costumes, they were fantabulous which complemented with all the choreographies. The orchestra was great as well. The commentary can be better and there was a little bit of repetitiveness which is why I am giving 4 stars. We went to the show at San Francisco War Memorial Opera House and we loved it.

It’s a shame I have to give this religious tent revival on downers even one star, it doesn’t deserve it. Shen Yun is utterly horrible, I can’t say it any more plainly than that. And no not in the «it’s so horrible you have to see it to believe it» way. It’s just horrible. We (me, wife, son) left during the first intermission and only waited that long out of an unwillingness to embarrass the poor sots on stage by walking out in the middle of their performance. We probably should have.
Let’s put aside the odious religious and political propagandizing that’s the backbone of this excuse for a performance and look strictly at the performance itself for a moment. This show commits the ultimate entertainment sin: It’s boring. The dancing is repetitive, poorly choreographed tripe. The dancers themselves are either incapable of achieving anything approaching excitement or they’ve been specifically instructed not to. Either way the result is a tedium of grade-​school level dancing that in no way entertains or excites. In fact that’s an insult to grade schoolers, I’ve been to a grade school dance recital and yes it was better than this.
There are parts of this show that are borderline offensive in their idiotic portrayal of conflict between the communist chinese government and the noble, selfless and (I kid you not) super-​powered monks of the other world. Is it possible for a group of people to behave in a racist manner towards their own culture? If so that’s what happens in Shen Yun. In parts it was like watching Chinese Benny Hill, complete with people in hammer-​and-​sickle emblazoned jackets using over-​sized truncheons to bop the poor, beleaguered super-​monks on the head.
So as a performance this show stinks. How about the message they’re trying to get across? The overtly religious overtone of this propaganda show is so thick that after only an hour you feel filthy with it. There’s a childishly clear message here: Communism BAAAAAD, our religion GOOOOOD. I do not jest when I tell you that the performance pulls up just shy of putting these words on paper and showering the audience with them. I even agree with half of that statement and I was sick of hearing it within 15 minutes! There is not a single solitary iota of subtlety in this show. The last act before the intermission is an off key, broken voiced soprano singing in Chinese literally telling the audience that the «liars» (aka communists) will be judged and only those who believe in whatever savior it is these automatons are shilling for will be granted access to the great beyond. There’s even video of the blessed ascension of the believers played out on the screen behind the performers at certain times, just in case you didn’t understand the first dozen times. What’s that huge club coming towards my face? Oh, it’s your religious beliefs. No thanks!
I only wish this were the end of what this show does to offend and insult the audience. Unfortunately, they have the gall to suggest that we as an audience are stupid enough to believe that the pablum we’re witnessing on stage represents «the rebirth of thousands of years of Chinese dance». This suggestion is so utterly preposterous that it’s a straight out insult to the intelligence of the people in the auditorium. I know very little about dance and less about the history of Chinese dance, but what I do know is that it’s flat out ridiculous to suggest that the banal floundering we were subjected to this evening is in any way representative of anything that’s been around for thousands of years.
In short, this show is a rip off. Don’t go see it, you WILL regret it.

Stay away at all costs.
The dancing was interesting but the the political/​religious propaganda layered throughout the show was horrible. I was drawn in — like many of the other reviewers — but the marketing (billboards, mailings, etc.). It sounded like it would be a very interesting show.
About the only thing that was even interesting about the show was the dancing.
The «commentators» were wooden and had no personality.
The political commentary about the current government of China — whether true or not — was vicious and had no facts to support it.
The religious commentary — «Science is bad and all untrue, blah blah blah» — was confusing and didn’t fit in with anything else in the show.
All in all — stay away — far far away.

Shen Yun is equal parts concert, musical theatre, and high-​flying Hong Kong action film; yet still manages to compress 5,000 years of Chinese history into just a couple hours. Once a local NYC Chinese-​American Christmas tradition, Shen Yun is taking flight on an international tour with over 50 performers who change their entire routine on a yearly basis.
The Southeast Asian version of a variety show delves into the drama of the Qin Dynasty and drums through the Tang Era, until finally singing songs of protest aimed at the governmental heart of the current Communist State. Traditional costumes shine like multifaceted jewels, while a contingent of traditional and modern instrumentalists complement a full symphony orchestra. With all the dazzling sets, gymnastics, and bilingual narration, the only thing these dancing demi-​gods don’t offer you is a meal. Unfortunately you’ll feel as if they should’ve after forking over nearly $ 200 per ticket.

This show was horrendous!
Problems with the show:
1. Propoganda filled brainwashing session
2. felt like an amateur talent show, each act just started and ended with no flow or connection besides propoganda
3. hardly any references to traditional Chinese new year culture
4. I had to watch this during the superbowl, it was me and a bunch of old women and children
5. no dragon dance in sight
6. I farted and was told to «cut it out» by security
Avoid at all costs!

Not really worth all the hype. Way too much propaganda added in between the «real» performances.
The dancing/​choreography and orchestra were very solid, but the rest were actually quite annoying. The opera singing especially. No offense to the religion but the lyrics to the songs sounded a bit threatening. Maybe the meaning got lost in translation but it just sounded like if we didn’t follow «Da Fa» we’re all going to get hit by lightnings and get washed away by great floods. It really left a bad taste in mouth after paying so much to see a supposedly amazing show with my family.
The dancers and musicians, you guys did great. I would not recommend this to anyone and I regret to have ever taken my family to see this horrible propaganda crap.