BUFFALO, N.Y.—Jack Liguori, a real estate developer, and his wife Sharon Liguori, an interior designer, watched Shen Yun Performing Arts at Shea’s Buffalo Theatre on March 23.
“The colors, oh, the
colors are gorgeous,” said Mrs. Liguori.
“Some of the movements they made astounded [me],” said Mr. Liguori. “I was so impressed with the coordination.”
Based in New York, Shen Yun was founded in 2006 by leading Chinese artists and quickly became the world’s premier
classical Chinese dance and music company. Now, with eight equally sized companies that tour the world simultaneously, Shen Yun is on a mission to revive traditional Chinese culture and the beauty of China before communism.
Mr. Liguori shared his belief that the Chinese people and
their culture are not represented by China’s current government.
“The people of China are just like the people here,” he said. “Governments differ, and if they have problems, it’s the government, not the people.”
During the performance, the audience learns that Shen Yun is
not allowed to perform in China.
“When you have people in control that don’t want to hear what you have to say ... that’s one of the things that deter freedom,” Mr. Liguori said.
According to Shen Yun’s website, traditional Chinese culture was founded on the
spiritual teachings of Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism. Mr. and Mrs. Liguori said they could see similarities between their own beliefs and the spirituality in Chinese culture.
“I admire it very much,” said Mr. Liguori. “No matter whether it agrees with what I think or not, I think it’s in the general same direction.”
“I see a lot of parallels, the same message,” said Mrs. Liguori.
Mr. Liguori also expressed his appreciation for the
performers.
“I was very impressed at many things they did and their dedication,” he said.
Reporting by Weiyong Zhu and Wandi Zhu.
