IDAHO FALLS, Idaho—Shen Yun performed at the Civic Center for Performing Arts in Idaho Falls for the first time, with a sold-out theater on April 19.
NTD spoke to audience members including, Nicole Giacomini, who drove 4 hours by herself to see the show.
“I’ve wanted to see the show for a very long time. It is a gift, it is an exquisite gift,” said Giacomini, who drove from Montana.
“Everyone needs to see it,” the entrepreneur and real estate broker said.
“Not only for the grace and the beauty of it, but also to educate and understand about Falun Dafa and the principles of truth-compassion-forbearance. It’s a universal message.”
“It is so amazing. I have—totally love it. It’s so good to see some of the Chinese culture from before communism, and to just be able to participate in this amazing experience,” said Joseph Butler, DevOps team lead at Idaho National Laboratory.
“To be able to see people come together, to tell a story of something that was there before the revolution … to see people trying to bring it all back together and to bring that history back, it’s just fascinating. I thought it was mind-blowing. It was fantastic,” said Brent Knight, owner of Knight Dental Lab.
The New York-based company also sheds light on the persecution of Falun Gong that continues in today’s China.
“It was sadness. I was surprised that that is the truth and that’s what’s going on in the country. I know what’s going on but I don’t know what’s going on, right? Because I only know what’s going on by the news so it was very sobering, and made my heart hurt for everybody,” said Natalie Stewart, wellness director at St. John’s Health.
“For me, because it was so heart-wrenching, it just makes you want to reach out to do anything you can to help these people that are suffering,” Butler said.
Shen Yun’s mission—reviving a heritage that spans thousands of years.
“In my faith belief system, we believe we are all divine beings that came to earth that we existed before, and we’re coming to earth under the Creator’s plan, so I was excited to see the universal message, that we are all trying to return to heaven through those same principles,” Giacomini said.
“The spiritual belief that was sung in that song, again, told me that we have more in common than we have differences. And I thought that that’s really the big thing I got out of the show tonight,” Knight said.
NTD News, Idaho Falls, Idaho
