(Minghui.org) The Shen Yun Performing Arts New York Company made its first-ever stop in Melbourne, Australia at The Regent Theatre from April 10-15, 2012. Hailed as the ‘arts capital’ of the country, Melbourne seemed a likely choice for the launch of the dance company's 2012 World Tour ‘down-under.’
Member of Parliament: Shen Yun 'is beautiful, impressive, and important to see'
State Member of Parliament for the Eastern Metropolitan region, Jan Kronberg (Courtesy of State Office)
Jan Kronberg, State Member of Parliament for the Eastern Metropolitan region, said her heart was moved to the core by the Shen Yun show.
“We can reach deep into the souls of the Chinese people to see what the Chinese culture is about,” she said, touched by the show's mammoth undertaking of reviving traditional, ancient culture after Communist rule nearly destroyed it.
“They should be very proud of the work that they undertake,” she said. “I can see there is a message in the show. It is a beautiful way of delivering such an important message.”
The message she was referring to was one of “people looking for freedom,” and to be free to practice their beliefs. “It is important that everybody has that freedom,” explained the MP.
She said that people who came to see the opening performance would be leaving impressed by the quality of the performance. “Hopefully, they will tell 10 people,” Ms. Kronberg said. “It is beautiful, it is impressive, and it is important to see.”
Ms. Kronberg and her husband Mike recently returned from a trip to Taiwan where Shen Yun had sold-out performances in seven Taiwanese cities.
“When I was in Taiwan, I went to the village and saw performances in mountains,” she recounted. “It [Shen Yun] is beautiful to see because it reminds us when we saw the indigenous people there dancing.”
Singer Mike Brady: Shen Yun ‘was a visual spectacular that I will never forget’
Mike Brady, most known for his Australian rules football anthems like 'Up There Cazaly,' said of Shen Yun, "For a musician it was just wonderful." (Courtesy of Mike Brady)
Also in the audience was singer, song writer, and radio personality Mike Brady. In an interview after the show, he shared some of his thoughts on Shen Yun.
“Well I was staggered,” said the musician, “I thought it was unbelievably beautiful and it was not what I expected. I was so happy they had a live orchestra and the orchestra was fantastic, and the dancing was extraordinary.
“I expected I would like it, and I really did enjoy it very much. I thought it was an incredible spectacle and I’d go again.”
In commenting on the Shen Yun Orchestra, he said, “I thought it was wonderful. I happen to like Chinese music anyway and Chinese instruments, but I thought the marriage of the two of them was quite incredible. And the deeper I got into the show, the more I appreciated how cleverly they’d done it. It was very, very clever.”
He also talked about the unifying aspect of Shen Yun's live orchestra. “Well mostly the music dictated the moods of the pieces. So there was sadness, there was pathos and there was uplifting, a lot of uplifting pieces, and a lot of drama and lots of percussion. For a musician it was just wonderful.”
Mr. Brady thought that the erhu solo by virtuoso Xiaochun Qi: “was just incredible,” and as for the tenors and the soprano, he said, “I thought, boy! A couple of great voices there!”
Tenors Hong Ming and Tian Ge and soprano Chia-Ning Hsu have been well received throughout Shen Yun’s world tour.
Mr. Brady, like most audience members, also raved about the dancing in the show: “Well I thought the precision of the dancers extraordinary, the ensemble was extraordinary. The precision was incredible. The solo dancers, the athleticism and the precision of the soloists were extraordinary too.”
Through music and choreography narratives, Shen Yun showcases universal principles such as benevolence and justice, propriety and wisdom, respect for the heavens and divine retribution, that originate from Confucianism, Buddhism, and Taoism. These ideals are the essence of traditional Chinese culture. Mr. Brady said that this particularly resonated with him.
“Because it was concentrating largely on the spiritual and mythological elements of ancient Chinese culture, I thought for me, it was good to see that because we would not normally see or hear that.
“We in the West are very ignorant of how deep and extensive Chinese culture is, or how ancient it is. And this was a little window into another age in China where I suppose you could say the culture and spirituality and belief and faith were an intrinsic part of every day life and that time has changed and who knows, it may even come back one day.”
Mr. Brady thought this was a “very nice introduction, like a little window into the richness of Chinese culture, and to me I would really love my children to have seen it, because it really gives just a small insight into the massive depth of culture that still exists in China.”
Although his daughter attended Shen Yun last year, he wished that all his children and that “everybody” would see the show.
“I have already spread the word. I’ve told everybody how great it is and I took a few of the brochures and I gave them out,” said Mr. Brady.
The singer also noted that the diversity of the audience in terms of race and nationality, noting that “they seemed to absolutely love it. Everyone was talking about it afterwards. I thought it was a runaway success on the night.”
Mr. Brady concluded. “I felt that the audience was enthralled by it, the color and the precision of the performances was amazing. I didn’t see a single mistake or anybody get remotely out of whack with the rest of the ensemble. It was a visual spectacular that I will never forget. It was fabulous. I was very honored to be there.”
Australian singer: Shen Yun is ‘something very, very special’
Beverley Sheehan (L) and Judith Durham (R)
Amid much applause and admiration New York-based Shen Yun Performing Arts gave the final curtain call for its 2012 visit to Melbourne’s Regent Theatre on Sunday April 15.
Also in the audience was world famous singing star Judith Durham, who was accompanied by her sister Beverley Sheehan, a jazz singer and classical pianist.
“The show itself is the most amazing combination of the most beautiful aspects of the arts that you could possibly imagine,” Ms. Durham said. “The discipline and the inspiration that the artists have shown us through the performance has been truly, truly remarkable, and I’m in awe.
“I’m going to be doing a concert tour myself very soon and I’m kind of humbled by what I’ve seen on the stage during this performance. I really encourage everyone to go along and see the show. I really think that this is something very, very special because it unites cultures of so many different countries.
She continued. “So the costumes, the scenery, the beautiful orchestra, the magnificent singing, and of course, the dancing, it was just a display of such spectacular beauty. I’m very very thrilled that I came. Thank you very, very much. I’m delighted to be here.”
Ms. Durham is a talented singer, classical pianist, song writer/composer. She gained international stardom as the lead singer in The Seekers. This folk band was the first Australian group to top the charts in the United States with the song “Georgy Girl.”
Ms. Durham said, “The singers were magnificent and I know what discipline has gone into creating those wonderful voices. The strength was incredible too.”
Ms. Sheehan said, “It was astonishing” that the soloists, Soprano Chia-Ning Hsu and Tenors Hong Ming and Tian Ge were able to “sing like that without any microphones or amplification. The strength and breath control is remarkable.”
When asked about the Chinese erhu virtuoso, Xiaochun Qi playing “A Song for the Heart,” they said that they were amazed.
“It’s a remarkable instrument,” said Ms. Durham. “I couldn’t believe how beautiful and how expressive it was. I was likening it to singing actually, but the delicacy and the nuances—it’s just an unbelievable instrument. I’ve never seen it before.”
“I also thought it was exquisite,” said Ms. Sheehan. “It was to me a little bit like a violin but with even more emotion in it. That was the feeling it gave me. And it just seemed to transport the player as well—lovely, the whole show was just magnificent.”
The Shen Yun Orchestra, conducted by Ying Chen, is a blend of classical Western and traditional Chinese instruments such as the pipa and suona all playing original scores specifically composed for each performance.
Ms. Durham commented on the orchestra, saying it was “a remarkable blend of sound and textures. That was what was surprising. There are so many other nuances and differences that all seem to blend together beautifully for different expressions.
“The work is all originally composed and that’s a remarkable thing in itself. And when you see the scenery, and the music that’s been created for the scenery, and the dancing it [the music] just carries it so beautifully and helps with the emotion—a very interesting blend of textures. That’s what I found, overwhelmingly so.”
Ms. Sheehan concluded by saying that the orchestra “did a wonderful job. It was precise and beautiful. I just felt it all combined beautifully and complemented the dancers very, very well. It was lovely to see the female conductor as well.”
Baritone, conductor, musical director: Shen Yun ‘thoroughly engaging’
Douglas Heywood and Alexandra Cameron attend Shen Yun Performing Arts in Melbourne's Regent Theatre.
Another appreciative audience member, Douglas Heywood, who was accompanied by his wife, Alexandra Cameron, said he “was fascinated at times the way they just seemed to glide across the stage, the dancers. It’s wonderful. A thoroughly engaging performance, thoroughly engaging.”
Mr. Heywood is a university lecturer in music and education, a baritone, musician, and conductor who has been granted the Order of Australia.
When he was asked about the Shen Yun Orchestra, he replied, “I loved the sound,” also complimenting the conductor. “The orchestra did a fantastic job.”
The choreography and the different moods evoked by each dance were aspects that Mr. Heywood appreciated.
“What I loved about it was not only the energy of the dance but also the lovely flowing movement of it and the choreography is just stunning, absolutely stunning,” he said.
Mr. Heywood also enjoyed the costumes. “I think the colors of the costumes are quite stunning, they really were.”
Ms. Cameron, who teaches music at an elite Melbourne school, said she “really enjoyed hearing the orchestra. I really enjoyed the way the Master of Ceremonies introduced all the parts of the orchestra.”
She also enjoyed the 4,000 year-old erhu, also known as the two-stringed Chinese violin, saying “it is very beautiful.”
Ms. Cameron also “enjoyed all the costumes, the colors and the movements. The ladies dancing with their big long sleeves, the material and colors are so creative. I love the program today, it is so delicate.”
The dance set “Lotus Leaves” especially caught her attention. “I love the flowers, the blossoms and the fan … the way that they use their fans is so simple, so elegant and so beautiful. The use of the fan, the man with the fan made a noise, the lady with the fan was so graceful. It is so simple, so effective.”
Ms. Cameron was especially interested in the live orchestra, being a music teacher herself.
“The combination of Western/European and Eastern/Chinese instrument is beautiful and it really works.
“The music accompanying the dances is very strong, very powerful.
“The composer is to be commended, as every piece is lovely.
“I love the trumpet, I love the brass.
“The strong start with gong and percussion, and then it goes to something soft, smart.”
Concluding she said, “I really enjoyed tonight. Just the different instruments and dancing. I would bring this message to everybody and around the world.”
Source:
http://www.theepochtimes.com/n2/shen-yun-on-tour/shen-yun-delights-state-member-of-parliament-218816.html
http://www.theepochtimes.com/n2/shen-yun-on-tour/singer-mike-brady-shen-yun-was-a-visual-spectacular-that-i-will-never-forget-221229.html
http://www.theepochtimes.com/n2/shen-yun-on-tour/shen-yun-is-something-very-very-special-says-australian-singer-judith-durham-221514.html
http://www.theepochtimes.com/n2/shen-yun-on-tour/baritone-conductor-musical-director-shen-yun-thoroughly-engaging-220517.html
Category: Shen Yun Performing Arts
