Shen Yun has been performing in the United Kingdom for more than three weeks since last year in December.
Joze Sproston, owner of a dance school in West Yorkshire, saw Shen Yun in Manchester on Jan. 14 and was left in awe.
“The first time I’ve ever seen anything like this,” said Sproston. “They just look like they’re gliding, but you don’t see them move across the stage, which is very beautiful to watch, especially for the women. The power of the men dancing is just fantastic. The jumps are just incredible.”
Just like Sproston, the owner and the vice principal of a dance school in Woking were captivated by the performers’ artistic skills.
“The way that they’re in every position and then they change that formation and it’s just exquisite,” said Linda Blyth-Phillips, principal and the owner of Phillomena Dance School.
“It’s just beautiful. My fave was the water sleeves, just divine.”
Blyth-Phillips took her friend Sara Hastings-Holland with her to see Shen Yun on Jan. 11 in Woking, UK.
Hastings-Holland is also the vice-principal of Phillomena Dance School
“The way they work together, their dynamics, just the way they move from space to space, and everybody knew exactly where they should be, when they should be there. Their heads, their eyes, their movements, all exactly the same. Just spot on,” said Hastings-Holland.
Classical Chinese dance can be well understood as the expression of traditional Chinese culture through aesthetic movement.
Today, Shen Yun brings out those values with Chinese classical stories and those set in modern-day China.
“The morals, the ethos, everything behind the company they brought out I feel onto the stage and knows that very, very emotional, [and] the ones with the Dafa,” added Sarah. “Everyone should have their own beliefs and be allowed to feel those beliefs and worship those beliefs and why not, so that was very deep for me very, and that touched me a lot.”
According to the Shen Yun Website, many of the Shen Yun performers follow in the ancient Chinese tradition.
This has inspired them to integrate spirituality into their work.
“I could see 100 percent like a spiritual element and religious side and especially when it comes to their own country and displaying what they believe in and where they’ve come from its really magical to be able to see that. Especially through the dance as well,” said Model George Finlay.
“The music and the dance and just being able to see everything, but the stories behind it and how they develop it without saying anything. It’s just amazing. I can’t believe it.”
NTD News, Woking, Manchester, UK
