Ed Bilbao, a company vice president, said: “the mesmerizing costumes and the choreography, it's just fascinating, you know, even the music, you know, transports you to a land that you've never been. So it's not only a performance for me, it is really a journey to the rich culture of China.”
“I heard that every year they have new choreography and new music. So that makes me want to come back. So I really appreciate his effort,” said Edmundo Delgao, a pastor.
“They're using dance and expression of a faith to oppose tyranny, to oppose the Chinese Communist Party. And I thought that was very strong. And frankly, I think they really need [to be] supported in that regard,” said Todd Baumann, the director of operations at Special Guests Publicity, LLC. “I saw that the New York Times is publishing hit pieces on Shen Yun, which, in my mind, is absolutely absurd, especially based on what we've seen here today.”
“What stood out for me was the amount of faith-based information that was actually in the presentation. A lot of times, people in America believe, because of the communist system within China, that maybe a lot of people don't have a lot of faith in religion. And I thought it was very nice to see a strong connection there, as well as the desire of people to continue that going forward in the future,” John Kesich, the former senior vice president of the MTA Metro-North Railroad.
Jackie Baumann, a project manager, said: “the spirituality in the songs were one of the things that touched me. I think it was at the last song, like, we need to watch what we do here on Earth, because we've got eyes in Heaven looking at us. And that's our ultimate goal, is to get back to Heaven where our Lord wants us to be.”
“I just picked up on the fact that there are divine beings in all of us, and to see that being expressed in the form of dance and music and saying that greatness is coming once again, and that the dark that we may see in the world and that we may be accustomed to is not necessarily the divine that is within us, and there's something much greater,” said Nicole Bitskay, a social media manager.
Through each performance, audience members took note of a powerful message.
“Nothing beats tradition and I think that was a message that was on the screen at one point also, talking about tradition,” said Ron Pruder, a real estate company owner. “If you lose tradition, you lose everything. That's what keeps us together down the road. Families pass it along, from family: parent to child to children to grandchildren. That's what keeps everything alive, is tradition.”
“I understand this isn't just about the dance. It's about the expression of faith. It's about standing up to tyranny,” said Todd Baumann. “I would say, just keep going. You've got a lot of people behind you, and that support. I can sense a groundswell. It's only going to grow.”
