Shen Yun Performing Arts

Shen Yun Performing Arts
Dance company
Founded 2006
Headquarters Cuddebackville, New York
Area served
 Worldwide
Divisions New York Company, International Company, Touring Company
Website shenyun.com
Shen Yun Performing Arts
Chinese name
Traditional Chinese 神韻藝術團
Simplified Chinese 神韵艺术团
Japanese name
Hiragana しんいんげいじゅつだん
Shinjitai 神韻芸術団

Shen Yun Performing Arts, formerly known as Divine Performing Arts, is a performing-arts and entertainment company based in New York.[1] It performs classical Chinese dance, ethnic and folk dance, and story-based dance,[2] with orchestral accompaniment and solo performers. The Shen Yun website translates the phrase shen yun as "the beauty of divine beings dancing".[3]

Shen Yun was founded in 2006 by practitioners of Falun Gong, the spiritual discipline,[4][5] with the mission of reviving "the essence of 5000 years of Chinese culture," which it states to have been nearly destroyed by the Chinese government.[6] Performances around the world are hosted by local Falun Dafa Associations.

The group is composed of four performing arts companies: The New York Company, The Touring Company, and the International Company, with of a total of over 200 performers. For seven months a year, Shen Yun Performing Arts tours to over 130 cities across Europe, North America, Oceania, and Asia.[7] Shen Yun's shows have been staged in several leading theaters, including New York's Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts,[8] London’s Royal Festival Hall, Washington, D.C.'s Kennedy Center, Paris' Le Palais de Congrès.[5] The company has performed extensively in Taiwan,[9] but has yet to perform in Mainland China or Hong Kong. The show's acts and production staff are trained at Shen Yun’s headquarters in Cuddebackville, in Orange County, New York.[7]

History

Expatriate Chinese Falun Gong practitioners living in North America founded Shen Yun in 2006 in New York.[10] The company’s first tour took place in 2007, when the company comprised 90 dancers, musicians, soloists and production staff.[11][12] Shen Yun states that its underlying mission is to "revive the essence of 5000 years of Chinese culture", which it asserts to have been nearly demolished by the Chinese Communist government.[6] Initially the shows were titled "Chinese Spectacular",[4][5] "Holiday Wonders",[13] Chinese New Year Splendor, and "Divine Performing Arts", but now the company performs under the name "Shen Yun." As of 2009, Shen Yun had expanded to three full companies and orchestras that tour the world simultaneously.[11] By the end of the 2010 season, approximately one million people had seen the troupe perform.[7]

Content

Each year, Shen Yun creates original productions lasting 2.5 hours and consisting of approximately 20 vignettes featuring classical Chinese dance and ethnic dance, as well as solo musicians and operatic singing.[7][14] Before each act, bilingual MCs introduce the upcoming performance in Chinese and in local languages.[7][15]

Dance

Each touring company consists of approximately 60 male and female dancers, and large-scale group dance is at the center of Shen Yun productions.[5] The shows mainly feature what is described on the company’s website as "classical Chinese dance" – a comprehensive dance system passed down through thousands of years and which is recognizable in part for its extensive use of acrobatic and tumbling techniques, forms and postures.[12][16]

Shen Yun’s repertoire draws on stories from Chinese history and legends, such as legend of Mulan,[2][17] Journey to the West[18] and Outlaws of the Marsh.[19] It also depicts “the story of Falun Gong today”.[11][20] During the 2010 production, for instance, at least two out of 16 scenes depicted the "persecution and murder of Falun Gong practitioners" in contemporary China, including the beating of a young mother to death, and the jailing of a Falun Gong protester. In addition to classical Chinese dance, Shen Yun also draws inspiration from the spirit of various ethnicities, including Yi, Miao, and Mongolian dance.[21]

Shen Yun describes classical Chinese dance as comprising three core components: bearing (yun), form, and technical skill.[4] Technical skill describes the physical techniques of jumping, flipping, and leaping. Form encompasses the subtle expressive movements and postures that make up Chinese dance. Finally, bearing is described by Shen Yun as referring to the "inner spirit…something resembling cultural DNA or an ethnic flavor" that allows the dancer's emotional state to be conveyed.[22] Because the "bearing" (yun) of classical Chinese dance is related to a society's culture, some of what makes up the distinct Chinese bearing has been "lost in the process" since the cultural changes of the Communist revolution, according to Shen Yun choreographer Vina Lee.[4] Lee relates that dancers must "refine their moral character" in order to "convey the transcendence and spiritual realm that is the very soul of Chinese culture".[23]

Music

Shen Yun dances are accompanied by a Western philharmonic orchestra that integrates several traditional Chinese instruments, including the pipa, suona, dizi, guzheng, and a variety of Chinese percussion instruments.[7][24] There are solo performances featuring Chinese instruments such as the erhu.[4][14] Interspersed between dance sequences are operatic singers performing songs which sometimes invoke spiritual or religious themes, including references to the Falun Gong faith.[7][25] A performance in 2007, for instance, included reference to the Chakravartin, a figure in Buddhism who turns the wheel of Dharma.[26]

The company counts a number of noted musicians among its ranks. Three performers—flutist Ningfang Chen, erhuist Mei Xuan and tenor Guan Guimin—were recipients of the Chinese Ministry of Culture’s “National First Class Performer” awards. Prior to joining Shen Yun, Guan Guimin was well known in China for his work on soundtracks for over 50 movies and television shows.[27][28] Other notable performers include Erhu soloist Xiaochun Qi.[29]

Costume and backdrops

Shen Yun’s dancers perform wearing intricate costumes, often accompanied by a variety of props.[4][7] Some costumes are intended to imitate the dress various ethnicities, while other depict ancient Chinese court dancers, soldiers, or characters from classic stories.[4] Props include colorful handkerchiefs, drums,[4] fans, chopsticks, or silk scarves.[20][30]

Each Shen Yun piece is set against a digitally projected backdrop, usually depicting landscapes such as Mongolian grasslands, imperial courts, ancient villages, temples, or mountains.[7][15][31] Not all the backdrops are static; some contain moving elements that integrate with the performance.[30]

Artists

Lead dancers, musicians and solo performers include the following:

Principal dancers

  • Angelina Wang
  • Chelsea Cai
  • Rocky Liao
  • Steven Wang
  • Melody Qin
  • Miranda Zhou-Galati
  • Daoyong Zheng
  • Rachael Yuning Bastick
  • Golden Li
  • Chad Chen
  • Tony Xue
  • Hsiao-Hung Lin
  • Brian Cao
  • Madeline Lobjois
  • Jim Chen
  • Cheryl Lin
  • Lily Wang
  • Seongho Cha
  • Tim Wu
  • Jerry Zhang
  • Cindy Liu

Orchestra

  • Chia-Jung Lee (principal flute)
  • I-Chen Huang (principal cello)
  • Yevgeniy Reznik (clarinet)

Karen Khachatryan (bass trombone) Sara Renner (oboe) Chia-Chi Lin (concertmaster)

Eric Robins (trumpet) Astrid Martig (concertmaster) Steven Louie (bassoon)

Soloists
  • Min Jiang (soprano)
  • Tian Ge (tenor)
  • Qi Xiaochun (erhu)
  • Haolan Geng (soprano)

Choreographers, Composers and Conductors

  • Yungchia Chen (choreography)
  • Michelle Ren (choreography)
  • Wang Xuejun (choreography)
  • Junyi Tan (composer)
  • Jing Xuan (composer)
  • Keng-Wei Kuo (conductor)
  • Leif Erikson Sundstrup (conductor)
  • Milen Nachev (conductor)
  • Yohei Sato (conductor)

[32]

Billing and promotion

Shen Yun promotes itself as "a presentation of traditional Chinese culture as it once was: a study in grace, wisdom, and virtues distilled from five millennia of Chinese civilization." The company is described in promotions as reviving Chinese culture following a period of assault and destruction under the Communist Party. Shen Yun is heavily promoted in major cities with commercials, billboards, and brochures displayed in the streets and in businesses, as well as in television and radio profiles.[33][34]

Shen Yun performances are often produced or sponsored by regional Falun Dafa Associations, and are promoted by practitioners of the spiritual practice, which is persecuted in China.[10] Some journalists have raised objections about the show's promotion strategy, which does not always clearly note the religious-themed content of the performance.[35][36][37]

Tour

Shen Yun was established in 2006 as a company with approximately 40 dancers, as well as an orchestra, soloists, artistic directors and production staff. During its 2007 season, the company produced 32 performances, and was seen by an estimated 200,000 people. Since its inaugural season, the company has expanded to include four equally large companies with dozens of dancers, soloists, and orchestras. These companies tour the world simultaneously for seven months per year, performing in over 130 cities worldwide.[7] The company's productions have spanned North America, Europe, Asia, Australia, and Latin America. Notable venues include the London Colosseum in London, England; the Palaise de Congres in Paris; the Kennedy Center Opera House in Washington DC; and the David H. Koch theater at New York's Lincoln Center.[38] By the conclusion of Shen Yun's 2010 performance, an estimated one million people had seen the performance worldwide.[7]

Despite touring to five continents, Shen Yun does not perform in mainland China. Moreover, the Chinese government has attempted to cancel Shen Yun performances internationally through political pressure via its foreign embassies and consulates.[39][40][41][42][43][44] Chinese diplomats have also sent letters to elected officials in the West exhorting them not to attend or otherwise support the performance, which they describe as "propaganda" intended to "smear China's image."[45][46] Members of the Communist Party's top political consultative body have also expressed concern because China's state-funded arts troupes have been unable to compete with Shen Yun's popularity internationally.[47] Shen Yun representatives say the Chinese government’s opposition to the show stems from its depictions of modern-day political oppression in China, as well as the fact that it includes expressions of traditional Chinese cultural history that the Communist government has tried to erase.[48]

Shen Yun was scheduled to perform in Hong Kong in January 2010, but the performance was cancelled after a controversial decision by the government of Hong Kong to refuse entry visas to Shen Yun's production crew.[49] The decision was overturned in March of the same year, but the company has yet to return.[50]

Symphony Orchestra

In October 2012, Shen Yun’s symphony orchestra made its debut performance at Carnegie Hall in New York. The performance featured conductors Milen Nachev, Keng-Wei Kuo, and Antonia Joy Wilson, and the program included both classical works such as Beethoven’s Egmont Overture and Antonio Vivaldi’s Concerto in C Major, as well as original compositions that fuse Chinese and Western instruments.[51]

The following year in 2013 the Symphony Orchestra toured to seven American cities. In addition to Carnegie Hall, it performed at the Kennedy Center Concert Hall in Washington D.C., and the Davies Symphony Hall in San Francisco.[52]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Mission". Retrieved 15 November 2009. The Mission statement of Shen Yun Performing Arts
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 "International Incident". The Pacific Northwest Inlander. Retrieved 15 November 2009.
  3. ↑ "Frequently Asked Questions". Retrieved 2 December 2012. Shen Yun literally translates as: The beauty of divine beings dancing.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 4.6 4.7 Hunt, Mary Ellen (4 January 2009). "Chinese New Year Spectacular in S.F., Cupertino". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 4 September 2009.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 Wenzel, John (1 October 2007). "Chinese New Year embracing tradition". The Denver Post. Retrieved 5 September 2009.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 About the company
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 7.5 7.6 7.7 7.8 7.9 7.10 SUSAN HODARA. 5,000 Years of Chinese Music and Dance, in One Night. New York Times. 13 August 2010.
  8. ↑ Elise Knutsen, ‘Shen Yun Performance Brings out Stars and Awareness’, New York Observer, 5 July 2011.
  9. ↑ "Shen Yun Performing Arts 2009 World tour special coverage". Epoch Times. Retrieved 5 September 2009.
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 Wright, E. Assata (22 December 2011). "Shen Yun returns". Hudson Reporter. Retrieved 23 April 2012.
  11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 11.2 Shen Yun Performing Arts About the Company
  12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 Adriana Rambay Fernandez, Dancing around the world, Hudson Reporter, 22 January 2012.
  13. ↑ Higgins, Beau (15 November 2007). "'Holiday Wonders' Chinese Meets West Extravaganza". Broadway World. Retrieved 5 September 2009.
  14. ↑ 14.0 14.1 Sparacino, Micaele (19 January 2010). "Deities, Dragons, Dancers, and Divas". concertonet.com. Retrieved 29 January 2010.
  15. ↑ 15.0 15.1 Goodwyn, Albert (11 January 2007). "Chinese New Year Spectacular". San Francisco Bay Times. Retrieved 5 September 2009.
  16. ↑ Shen Yun, ‘Chinese Classical Dance Intro’
  17. ↑ Shen Yun Performing Arts, “Tales from Chinese Literature”
  18. ↑ Journey to the West
  19. ↑ Outlaws of the Marsh
  20. ↑ 20.0 20.1 Paula Citron. A dazzling show with a clear message. The Globe and Mail: Arts. 22 January 2008.
  21. ↑ Shen Yun Performing Arts, Chinese Ethnic and Folk Dance.
  22. ↑ Shen Yun Performing Arts, Classical Chinese Dance.
  23. ↑ Maureen Scott, Shen Yun: 5,000 years of Chinese Culture and Civilization set to Song and Dance and the LAC, 23 January 2012.
  24. ↑ Elina Shatkin. Vina leads Divine Performing Arts' Chinese New Year Spectacular. Los Angeles Times. 1 January 2009.
  25. ↑ Citron, Paula (22 January 2008). "A dazzling show with a clear message". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved 31 October 2012.
  26. ↑ Joel Markowitz, ‘January Pleasures’, DC Theatre Scene, 28 January 2007.
  27. ↑ Shen Yun Profile of Guan Guimin
  28. ↑ Zhao Jingyu, 傳遞真善與真美 提升人類道德 神韻藝術團 台北加演 Liberty Times, 13 March 2011.
  29. ↑ Robert Baxter, "New Year show, old traditions preserve Chinese culture," Courier Post, 30 December 2007.
  30. ↑ 30.0 30.1 Sid Smith, ‘Women flow like water in spectacle’, 28 January 2008.
  31. ↑ Meredith Galante. A Day In The Life Of A Professional Dancer In A Traditional Chinese Company. Business Insider. 11 January 2012.
  32. ↑ http://www.shenyunperformingarts.org/artists
  33. ↑ CNN (August 2010), Chinese Culture Alive in U.S.
  34. ↑ FOX 5 News, (13 January 2012), Behind the Scenes at Shen Yun.
  35. ↑ Konigsberg, Eric (6 February 2008). "A Glimpse of Chinese Culture That Some Find Hard to Watch". The New York Times.
  36. ↑ Dabkowski, Colin (30 May 2010). "Song & dance spectacular not exactly what it seems". Buffalo News. Retrieved 21 June 2010.
  37. ↑ Pousner, Howard (17 January 2012). "Many Atlantans OK with Chinese dance troupe's politics". Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Retrieved 23 April 2012.
  38. ↑ "Shen Yun Performing Arts David H. Koch Theater.
  39. ↑ US Department of State, BUREAU OF DEMOCRACY, HUMAN RIGHTS, AND LABOR,International Religious Freedom Report 2010 Report, 17 November 2010
  40. ↑ Epoch Times Article, Hans Bengtsson, 28 March 2009, "Empty Threats From The Chinese Embassy Backfire"
  41. ↑ Epoch Times Article, Joshua Philipp, 4 June 2010, "Despite Chinese Regime Pressure, The Show Goes On"
  42. ↑ US Department of State, BUREAU OF DEMOCRACY, HUMAN RIGHTS, AND LABOR, Moldova country report, 17 November 2010
  43. ↑ US Department of State, BUREAU OF DEMOCRACY, HUMAN RIGHTS, AND LABOR, Romania country report, 17 November 2010
  44. ↑ US Department of State, BUREAU OF DEMOCRACY, HUMAN RIGHTS, AND LABOR, Ukraine country report, 17 November 2010
  45. ↑ Keegan Hamilton, Chinese Government Kindly Reminds Seattle Officials About the 'Evil Cult' Coming to Town, Seattle Weekly, 6 February 2012.
  46. ↑ Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottawa/story/2007/01/17/chinese.html, 17 January 2007.
  47. ↑ Li, Raymond (8 March 2013). "State-funded arts troupes fail to shine against Falun Gong rivals abroad". South China Morning Post. Retrieved 26 April 2013.
  48. ↑ Regina Weinreich (24 June 2011), Beauty and the Beast:Shen Yun at Lincoln Center. New York, The Huffington Post.
  49. ↑ Agence-France Presse, Falungong decries HK as democracy row deepens, 27 January 2010.
  50. ↑ Sonya Bryskine, Kong Court Upholds Freedom and Shen Yun, The Epoch Times, 10 March 2010.
  51. ↑ Carnegie Hall, Shen Yun Symphony Orchestra - Sunday, October 28, 2012.
  52. ↑ http://www.shenyunperformingarts.org/whatsnew/article/e/V-6LNDJ8kHE/symphony-orchestra-blog.html

External links