Shen Yun Performing Arts Touring Company played its final show at the Robinson Performance Hall in Little Rock, Arkansas on Monday night, Jan. 1. Arkansas Symphony Orchestra conductor, Philip Mann, was impressed by Shen Yun’s live symphony orchestra blend of East and West instruments.
Mann said, “[The music] is fantastic. I think it’s very well performed. It’s evocative, beautiful music and I’m very impressed with the orchestra, I think the musicians are superlative in their phenomenal performance.”
Along with music from the live orchestra, Shen Yun utilizes animated backdrops that interact with the performers on stage to transport the audience to different times and places in China.
Mann said, “I think actually I’ve loved everything I’ve seen so far. The opening sequence, it just brings you into the stage, it pulls you in. And I’ve enjoyed it very much. I think that the whole production, I mean, when you look at the quality of the costumes, and the choreography, and the scenery, it’s all a unique kind of, the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. The pacing is tight, it’s beautiful I mean it’s just a very well run presentation.”
He also gained new inspiration for himself from the performance.
“I mean I see so much, especially as a type of professional, I’m looking at the choreography, and the musical influences … like you see some of the inspiration and the cultural influences that have gone into the decisions of making how they programmed the dance. And they are kind of universal ideas and appeal, I mean there is an athleticism and gymnastic quality to things as well that is impressive. And I just enjoyed it very much.”
NTD News, Little Rock, Arkansas
