My Experience with Clarifying the Facts about Shen Yun Performing Arts

(Minghui.org) Deeply troubled by the New York Times' derogatory reports about Shen Yun, I decided to promote the show whenever possible so that people would have a chance to understand the facts. Here are some of my experiences in promoting Shen Yun.

Performing Arts Center Director Knows the Facts about Falun Gong

The Performing Arts Center in the city I live in has hosted Shen Yun performances for many years. The theater director, who was very friendly, had never watched a full Shen Yun performance, even though she had been in charge since their first show. To help her better understand what Shen Yun’s mission was, I set up a meeting.

One hour before the meeting, I sent her links of videos including, “The CCP’s Secret War: Cross-Border Suppression of Shen Yun Show and Falun Gong” and “5 Things About Shen Yun You Probably Didn’t Know”. I also texted her links to an Epoch Times report on a White House Religious Liberty Commissioner’s condemning the CCP’s transnational repression, and a NTD report, “Prosecutors Tie China Spy Case in Germany to Persecution of Falun Gong.”

After a friendly conversation at the meeting, I mentioned, “We have been working together since 2010. You probably know that Falun Gong is a spiritual practice, with the principles of Truthfulness, Compassion, Forbearance. Our hope is to help make the world a better place.”

I explained to her the message Shen Yun conveys, and why the CCP fears the show. I also mentioned the false reports in the New York Times, which led to the cancellation of performances at theaters abroad. The director replied that in Taiwan, everything is done according to the law, and no show will be canceled as long as the proper procedures are followed.

I invited her to attend the show this year. I offered her a Shen Yun pamphlet; she declined, saying that she had already watched the videos I had sent and there was no need for more information. I was happy that this person now understands the facts.

Temple Committee Members Discover the Truth

We hosted a tea party for the public to promote Shen Yun, and fellow practitioners and I invited the committee members of a temple to attend. The vice chairman of the committee asked directly if Shen Yun was related to Falun Gong. With a smile, I replied that Shen Yun was invited here by the Taiwan Falun Dafa Association.

I added, “Shen Yun promotes divine culture and teaches people to believe in God and do good deeds. Many of the performers are practitioners. Like you folks who have done something meaningful through the temple, we are also obligated to doing something good for society.”

As our time was short, we told them that the CCP is atheist, and all religions in China are under strict state control, with many groups severely punished including Falun Gong, which has been illegally banned. The chairman brought up their visit to China, and remarked they had driven for many miles without seeing a single temple. When they finally found one, they were refused entry because it was about 5 p.m. and people were off work.

The chairman then asked why the CCP persecutes Falun Gong. A fellow practitioner said, “Falun Gong has miraculous health effects on healing and fitness. That is one of the reasons why the number of practitioners has increased greatly. My health was restored after taking up the practice. The CCP is afraid that the number of practitioners is too large to be controlled.”

Although they could not make it to the party that day due to other commitments, they had learned the truth.

City Officials Welcome Shen Yun

To invite officials to the tea party, we met with the secretary of the mayor. This young man was a graduate of National Kaohsiung Normal University, so we started the conversation from the perspective of traditional culture.

I said, “One of the missions of Shen Yun is to revive morality and the values of traditional culture, which are cornerstones for social stability. Like a well-respected politician who got elected repeatedly, the Shen Yun group has grown to eight teams because of its wide acceptance by the public.”

He thanked Shen Yun for coming to their city. He then accepted the invitation to speak on behalf of the mayor at the tea party. He also bought a few tickets to watch the performance. I was happy he had decided to gain a better understanding of Chinese culture.

Selling Shen Yun Tickets to Company Executives

I served as a public relations representative for our tea party, always making sure I did my homework on their backgrounds before meeting visitors. On one occasion, I was scheduled to meet with four senior executives of a company, and three of them had never heard of Shen Yun. I broke the ice and warmly talked with them about their company, using information I had read online. I explained that the young Shen Yun artists would not only diligently improve in their art skills, but also become role models with high morals for young people.

I also told them about the CCP's persecution and the New York Times report about how a couple of Shen Yun performers who had left the company made false accusations against Shen Yun. One manager commented that they must definitely have been controlled by the CCP. I was thrilled that more people understood the truth. When I concluded, each of them bought two tickets.

Promoting Shen Yun at a County Tea Expo

My county has held a Tea Expo each year to encourage tea enthusiasts and well-known socialites. In previous years, we were unsuccessful securing a booth at the Expo for Shen Yun. This year, we were determined to acquire one, but as the deadline for the application loomed, we still had not succeeded. Suddenly the idea of contacting the officials in charge of the event arose. The chief in charge happened to be the former director of the Performing Art Center. So I set up a meeting with him.

I sent forth righteous thoughts at length before leaving home. I thanked him for his ongoing support of Shen Yun. I then told him that Shen Yun needed to gain more publicity this year due to an unprecedented increase in the number of performances. He listened attentively and suggested that we promote it in the format of a tea ceremony.

A final approval for the booth setup was needed from the county governor’s office. So we broached the matter with the governor during his break from a press conference for agricultural product marketing. His quick approval indicated that fellow practitioners in the media have built a good relationship with the public. Also, Master helped us after our xinxinglevel had improved, due to our efforts to promote Shen Yun.

I later learned that our exhibition booth was given a prime location. The booth organizer commented that because Shen Yun was a top-tier performance, the best spot should be reserved to promote it. Also, we did not have to submit any application or pay a fee. A long-held wish had finally come true, and in such a special way!

Conclusion

Practitioners must use their wisdom when explaining the facts about Shen Yun to the public. I usually start the conversation extolling the company's many achievements, and how it has conveyed the universal values worldwide. I would also talk about traditional culture, education, and other aspects of life before communism. I also addressed why Shen Yun was able to perform globally except in China.

In “Fa Teaching Given at the 2003 Atlanta Fa Conference,” (Collected Teachings Given Around the World Volume IV) Master said, “Clarifying the truth is the master key.” During this period of promoting Shen Yun, I seem to better understand the interconnection of the three things, which are studying the Fa, sending righteous thoughts, and clarifying the truth.

Practitioners have their own unique strengths. Each of us should step forward and do the three things well in their own way. I thank Master for giving me the opportunity to promote Shen Yun, through which I can share the facts with people. We should all cherish every opportunity to help more people understand Falun Gong and help support our projects to expose the persecution.