COSTA MESA, Calif.— On March 16, facilities director Jerry Eldridge and Miriam Eldridge, an elementary school teacher, enjoyed Shen Yun’s evening performance at the Segerstrom Center for the Arts.
While they were amazed by the beauty of Shen Yun’s classical Chinese, folk, and ethnic dances, what truly resonated with the duo was the show’s profound message.
“It was beautiful, it was very colorful, and I loved all the storytelling. I really enjoyed the message. It was a very positive message, and I thought it was a very honest message. It’s something everyone should hear. It was beautiful,” Ms. Eldridge expressed.
“The concept of seeking truth, the concept of living a life of kindness—in the several stories [the artists] told, the individual had to make a choice. It was always a choice based on love and willingness to sacrifice for that love. I thought it was beautiful.”
Mr. Eldridge chimed in that the message came through “honestly and cleanly” about “staying focused on God.”
“People can take it as a higher power or whatever they want, but I just saw of message of God—a clarity of vision that they presented to us. I just wanted to stand up and say ‘Amen’ every time,” he stated.
“I think the stories that they danced—each story [is about] good overcoming evil. It’s struggles that we have every day in everything that we do.”
The New York-based Shen Yun Performing Arts was foundedin 2006 by elite Chinese artists who had fled the persecution of the communist party.
For 5,000 years, China’s civilization flourished under the shared belief that the divine will bless those who uphold traditional moral values. Tragically, within just a few decades of the communist party’s violent takeover, these beliefs were erased and replaced with atheism.
The mission of Shen Yun artists is to return to the world’s stage—the glory and beauty of China’s 5,000 years of divinely inspired culture.
As an educator, Ms. Eldridge agreed that it’s important for the next generation to learn about traditional culture and history.
“[Shen Yun] reflected a lot of the stories that we share with students when we try to teach language arts and comprehension and reading. We do tell stories and tales from around the world. I kind of enjoyed that as well.”
Moreover, she loved Shen Yun’s choice of colors. For her, they weren’t just bright, but rather, “very hopeful colors.”
“I don’t know how they do it but it just felt like very hopeful colors in all the dances,” Ms. Eldridge said. “We’re looking forward to next year.”
For its 2024 touring season, Shen Yun’s eight equally-sized companies will be performing in over 200 cities across five continents. The artists can be expected to return with a brand-new set of choreography and musical compositions every year.
Reporting by Linda Jiang and Jennifer Tseng.
The Epoch Times is a proud sponsor of Shen Yun Performing Arts. We have covered audience reactions since Shen Yun’s inception in 2006.
