WASHINGTON, D.C.—Kelly and Tad Coffin attended Shen Yun Performing Arts for the first time at The Kennedy Center Opera House and were inspired by the beauty of China preserved through the arts.
“We very much enjoyed the show, and it was very informative, and it was great to see all this culture being preserved. I’m very sensitive to that and grateful for the hard work and all the effort. And It’s nice to see that it’s growing so much too,” said Mrs. Coffin, a painter, after the performance the evening of Jan. 26.
New York-based Shen Yun is the world’s premier classical Chinese dance company, and is renowned not only for its revival of the ancient art form but its unique stagecraft and production. The costumes, choreography, and culture all left an impression on the Coffins.
Along with classical Chinese dance, Shen Yun also performs ethnic and folk dances from China’s 50-plus ethnic minority groups and many regions.
“I think of the foundation for so many other art forms just in seeing this. The beauty of nature and of so many different cultures coming together of so many different—I guess regions and the beauty of that and their commonality as well as the differences,” Mrs. Coffin said.
Mr. Coffin, an expert in horsemanship and horse saddle developer, enjoyed the creativity he saw in Shen Yun.
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“I think that there’s an elegance to it. There’s a beauty in this dynamic motion. I think this is extraordinarily colorful,” he said.
“This is a stunning performance, and I just think that the choreography is really remarkable,” he said, describing one of the dances wherein the artists with their movements and yellow fans appeared to be flowers.
“And the mix of dancing and then the background and the interaction between the background and the stage—that’s very unique. I’ve not seen anything like that. That was really, really ingenious,” he added, referencing Shen Yun’s patented backdrop technology. “It’s just very imaginative and really remarkably done.”
Reporting by Terri Wu.
The Epoch Times is a proud sponsor of Shen Yun Performing Arts. We have covered audience reactions since Shen Yun’s inception in 2006.
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