SALT LAKE CITY—On March 22, Nate Keller, the founder of the American Folk Ensemble and the president of the Utah Valley Symphony, settled into his seat at the George S. and Dolores Doré Eccles Theater to watch Shen Yun Performing Arts for the very first time.
As a professional musician who has attended numerous festivals and performances worldwide over the years, he is well-versed in the arts. Nevertheless, he was stunned by the beauty of the evening show.
“The performance is spectacular. Very polished. I loved the music—the live music is very cohesive. You can hear all the different instruments; it’s just spectacular,” he exclaimed.
“The artistry, it’s perfect. The [dancers’] movements are so fluid, it’s seamless. Also, in terms of technology, it’s incredible because they have the screen and all the interaction with the digital [backdrop.] It’s just a feast visually.”
Since its advent in 2006, the performing arts company has grown to become a global sensation with eight equally sized companies, performing in over 200 cities worldwide this season.
“I especially loved the music because it was classical. It sounded like a recording because it was so well connected,” he expressed.
“It’s interesting how they mix the pipa and the erhu in with other traditional symphonic instruments, and it just works. I like how they did that, combining the folk with the classical.”
He was also touched by many of Shen Yun’s story-based dances because “it’s very connected to the human experience.”
Referring to the playful piece recounting the happenings inside a restaurant, Mr. Keller said, “You see [the characters] as children playing and having lots of crazy things happen, and then the health inspector comes in. These are the things that people deal with. I really like how they are showing the culture of China and also how that relates to all of us and all of our cultures.”
Prior to the communist takeover in 1949 and the regime’s spread of atheism, Chinese people had a deep belief in the divine. In fact, the whole foundation of China’s civilization was built on values and virtues from the spiritual teachings of Buddhism, Daoism, and Confucianism.
Shen Yun is currently forbidden by the ruling regime from performing in China.
“We’ve been to China to perform in a [Shanghai] festival, so we’ve seen some of [China’s] traditional dances but what’s special [in Shen Yun] is that they’re portraying the divine nature of people,” Mr. Keller expressed.
“In [present-day] China—they’re not open to religious beliefs and spirituality. So, I think it’s important to note that for 5,000 years in their culture, they’ve had this, and this has been their tradition. The dancing, the music—that’s the tradition of the people, the culture.”
“To be able to express that in a place like America, where we came here for religious freedoms, it’s nice. So, I think it would be beautiful for it to continue here and in other places where it is accepted and then maybe, go back to China and have the re-grasp their old roots of spirituality.”
Mr. Keller added that he thought Shen Yun’s mission is very important because “today, there’s so much technology out there. For children especially, there are video games and all these things that are competing with them to learn music and understand and appreciate culture.”
“[Shen Yun] is very important because it’s exciting and the delivery is wonderful. So, for children to see this—and really anyone—it brings them to something that’s important and needs to be sustained over time,” he stated.
“I’m grateful that excellence like this exists and that [the artists are] willing to come out and tour so that all of us can see it. It’s a lot of hard work, and I know this because I do these kinds of things. It takes a lot of effort and it’s more of a labor of love than probably a money-making venture. It’s important for them to do this and I hope they continue forever.”
