Da Nang: Eagerly Awaiting Shen Yun's Performances in Vietnam

Amid the lively atmosphere of the 2019 Da Nang International Fireworks Festival, the Shen Yun Performing Arts introduction event took place successfully on the evening of June 23 at the Novotel hotel on the poetic banks of the Han River, organized by Viet My Traditional Culture Company.

This was the first time the Shen Yun Performing Arts introduction event ‘visited’ the city ranked 15th among the New York Times’ 52 places to go in 2019, a friendly city that often hosts international cultural festivals. Overcoming their initial unfamiliarity, the guests – including leaders of government agencies, generals and senior officers of the Da Nang military and police, leaders of arts associations, dancers, art schools, theaters and performing troupes, as well as intellectuals in the arts, fine arts and other professions – were overwhelmed with emotion at the end of the program and expressed their wish to welcome Shen Yun to perform in Vietnam, especially in Da Nang.

Mr. Nguyen Hoang Long, former Vice Chairman of the Da Nang City People’s Committee and now President of the Da Nang Association for the Protection of Disabled Children and Orphans, shared:

“Tonight has been a wonderful night for me, and I want everyone to experience this wonder. So when Shen Yun comes to Vietnam, and especially to Da Nang, I will certainly be one of its most enthusiastic audience members, and I will help promote it and bring people to Shen Yun.”

Mr. Le Huy Hanh – Vice President of the Da Nang Fine Arts Association and Chairman of its Arts Council said:

“This is not just a program but a grand feast of literature, art, music and choreography, like a feast of the finest dishes. It was very well organized, and we met very friendly and open faces. When we came to this program, at first – and not only me – we were quite hesitant, not knowing what it would be like. After meeting everyone on the organizing team and watching the program, we found that we had already touched each other’s hearts and come together.”

Indeed, music and dance are arts that cross borders and can erase the distances created by differences of region, language, culture and belief, allowing genuine souls to find one another. It is this resonance deep in the heart that made emotions overflow; strangers suddenly became family, nothing was mine or yours anymore, and everyone turned toward the universal values of humanity. As Meritorious Artist Tran Hop Tuan, Director of the Nguyen Hien Dinh Tuong Theatre, Da Nang, felt: “This is a very good thing. Because, to tell the truth, culture is a bridge that brings people closer together. What we aim for is the human heart.”

Or as Mr. Tran Duy Tho, former Vice Rector of the Central Vietnam University of Construction, put it: “If it [Shen Yun] comes to Vietnam, I think it would be a very good thing, because it spreads Chinese culture, but from the perspective that it has already become the culture of all humanity.”

Sharing that view, People’s Artist Tran Dinh Sanh, former Director of the Nguyen Hien Dinh Tuong Theatre, said with emotion: “I think that bringing this art to everyone, to Vietnam, for the Vietnamese people to see, would be something very precious, extremely precious.”

Many intellectuals and art lovers at the program also took the opportunity to share their sincere feelings and wishes, such as:

Meritorious Artist Hoang Ngoc Chien, member of the Vietnam Dance Artists’ Association, exclaimed excitedly: “If Shen Yun comes to Vietnam, I will be the first to go and see it… Today I’ll tell my family about it, and tomorrow over coffee I’ll tell my friends and brothers.”

“I feel that if you can’t see this program, you miss out on a lifetime of enjoying art… if you don’t see it.” – People’s Artist Nguyen Thi Thu Nhan, Nguyen Hien Dinh Tuong Theatre, Da Nang.

Or director and Meritorious Artist Cao Dinh Lien, Nguyen Hien Dinh Tuong Theatre, Da Nang: “This program simply must be introduced. You cannot miss it, because it is so moving for the audience. It’s a pity I haven’t seen it live yet. Seeing it live would surely be many times more powerful.”

Architect Ho Duy Diem affirmed: “The people will certainly welcome and applaud it. One must surely have a special affinity to get to see it.”

“It is so wonderful, so wonderful, I don’t know what fine words to give Shen Yun. I am so looking forward to seeing Shen Yun performing in Vietnam.” – said Ms. Le Nguyen Tuong Vi, Deputy Director and choreographer at Nhat Huy Art Training and Performance Company, excitedly.

And saxophonist Tu Ba Thanh shared with an open heart: “I wish Shen Yun not only to perform all over the world for people to enjoy, but especially for the Vietnamese people. How can we let every Vietnamese person see it with their own eyes, so they can see and learn from it.”

This past May, Shen Yun’s 6 touring companies concluded their 2019 tour after performing in more than 150 cities for more than 1,000,000 people across the continents. Originally founded in 2006 by Chinese artists and based in New York, USA, with the mission of reviving 5,000 years of Chinese civilization through the borderless language of dance and music, Shen Yun Performing Arts has helped millions of people around the world experience and discover ancient Eastern culture, its moral values and the rich uniqueness of one of humanity’s oldest civilizations.

Why does the whole world look forward to Shen Yun?

In the first half of 2019, thousands of Vietnamese people traveled long distances to cities in Australia, the US, Japan, Taiwan and South Korea to see Shen Yun live, including a symphony orchestra combined with traditional Chinese instruments playing live. In Vietnam, the Shen Yun Performing Arts introduction event has been held 8 times in 3 of the country’s major cities. And wherever it goes, Shen Yun has been welcomed warmly and with sincere hearts, as the comments above show. Many people who have not yet seen the show wonder what makes not only the Vietnamese people but people all over the world look forward to Shen Yun so eagerly.

1. Genuine artists:

Speaking about this, poet Le Anh Dung, Deputy Head of the Da Nang Chapter of the Vietnam Writers’ Association, perceptively noted that the core of genuine art is the elevation that comes from within the artist. This elevation is not to be understood as indulging one’s emotions, but on the contrary as the moral standard of those who practice the art. He said:

“I think this is the beauty of the body in harmony with the beauty of the soul, and only with a firm spirituality can such a performance be possible. Without spirituality, without aiming for goodness, using art alone would never achieve this. Only with your whole soul and spirit in harmony with the universe, heaven and earth can such an aesthetic expression of humanity be created.”

He continued: “If something like Shen Yun spread throughout the world, there would be no more war, no more violence, and people would turn toward goodness. Why? Evil warns the world, while beauty saves the world, and it is this beauty – through this dance, this music and this performing spirit – that will save the world. It turns the world toward something nobler. Toward the heart, toward goodness, toward the Way.”

And Mr. Nguyen Hoang Long remarked: “I think the artists must have very noble characters, very pure souls, and they truly put enormous effort into their artistic work.”

“We architects only draw with our hands, but Shen Yun paints the blue sky with the whole body, with technique, artistry and spirit. Truly wonderful!” – architect Ho Duy Diem exclaimed.

Ms. Phan Thuc Linh, member of the Executive Committee of the Da Nang Dance Artists’ Association, followed the whole program very closely: “I think Shen Yun’s dancers go through very rigorous training. First of all, rigorous technical training. Their technique is very high. It is meticulous, long-term training. They also have practice sessions that are almost like meditation – from what I observed, there is a meditative mind within them, so their dance language and bearing have a very gentle quality. That is why Shen Yun’s movements are so graceful. Graceful here does not only mean the outward movements, but a grace that flows out from within their souls.”

Meritorious Artist Tran Hop Tuan, Director of the Nguyen Hien Dinh Tuong Theatre, Da Nang: “I rate it very highly. While watching, I was very moved. What I value most is the spirit, morality and determination of the artists performing this program. It is a wonderful work of art.”

Choreographer Bui Ha Nhat Huy, Director of Nhat Huy Dancer Performance and Training Company: “Another very special thing is that the dancers perform to the live music of a symphony orchestra. That is extremely difficult. It truly requires very careful preparation.

In particular, from the overview of the dancers, choreographers and dance teachers, I greatly admire their rigorous training. Learning dance itself, studying for 5-7 years, is already hard, but from the introduction we see that everyone trains extremely well and with great enthusiasm, which requires the dancers to give 200% of their strength every time they are on stage”.

Saxophonist Tu Ba Thanh summed up Shen Yun’s artists: “Wonderful people who train rigorously. They train with their hearts, with everything that is purest, in order to serve people. I must say it is truly Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance.”

2. Genuine people reviving a genuine civilization

Having long pondered the restoration of traditional cultural values, on the very evening of the Shen Yun introduction program, People’s Artist and choreographer Le Huan remarked: “This is what is truly advanced and rich in national identity. As soon as I heard how this arts organization was founded, based on 5,000 years of Chinese civilization yet established in New York – that is, its starting point is very national, and it was founded in a very advanced place – we can draw this lesson: in art, if you go to the very depths of a nation’s culture, you meet the essence, the ultimate achievement of art. We must learn this.”

From a professional perspective, historian Dr. Tran Duc Anh Son, CEO of Tao Dan Thu Quan Publishing Company (Da Nang), was very impressed by the founding of Shen Yun. In his view, Shen Yun has preserved the culture of traditional China without mixing it with what has happened in Chinese society today. Sincerely moved, he said: “I think they have done very well. As I said, they try to preserve their culture in a pure way, unadulterated, in today’s social context with so many trends and so much confusion. I think they have a future. And that is why they are recognized by the Western world; people don’t want to recognize a hybrid culture. Because culture is the identity of a nation, an idea by which it is recognized. Shen Yun has achieved this.”

Mr. Nguyen Hoang Long, former Vice Chairman of the Da Nang City People’s Committee, shared profoundly: “Because this is not only the crystallization of 5,000 years of Chinese art and culture but also the crystallization of human culture from ancient times to today, and if this cultural tradition can be preserved, humanity will become better and life will become more worth living.”

Master of Public Administration Che Viet Son – Senior State Management Specialist and former Deputy Director of the Da Nang Department of Home Affairs said: “The cultures of Vietnam and China intersect and intertwine, and I think cultural traditions need to be preserved and cherished, especially the creativity in Shen Yun’s culture and art”.

Mr. Son excitedly shared his feelings after seeing Shen Yun’s pieces in the introduction program: “Wonderful! It stirs up my emotions, makes me more optimistic, makes me love life more and feel more attached to life, to nature and to people, and makes me think responsibly about preserving, promoting and further developing our nation’s cultural identity.”

With passion and conviction, businesswoman and director of the HR training company Edutainment Vietnam – Ms. Ngo Bich Ha said: “If every dancer, especially such young dancers, can bring back to life an entire 5,000-year culture, that is truly wonderful. If every country had dancers like these and shows like these, it would truly bring that country’s culture back to life and keep it alive forever in people’s hearts. And I wish Vietnam had shows like these, carrying the national spirit and the culture of the Vietnamese people to friends around the world, just as Shen Yun has done.”

3. A refined beauty radiating from genuine values

Composer Truong Quang Thanh, VTV8 channel, Vietnam Television, shared: “Shen Yun brings together many elements: art, dance, music, choreography… in general, a great deal of excellence comes together in the program”.

Looking more deeply at the values Shen Yun brings, composer Truong Quang Thanh likened that beauty to richly colored flowers: “They have combined history and the cultural elements of ancient China with the modern to create flowers. I must say very beautiful flowers that they bring into our lives. Simply by watching, we understand at once; to be honest, it is the sublime beauty of art, in both music and dance.”

“After watching the Shen Yun introduction, I felt the cultural values of people, the cultural values of humanity welling up, with emotions that can be said to be very special. All the sounds, melodies, rhythms, costumes, dances and so on… blend together in a very cultured, very artistic way” – Mr. Che Viet Son shared.

“Wonderful, I don’t know what else to say. Truly wonderful. Watching a program like this, we feel refreshed and love life very much.

I find it very convincing. They are truly wonderful, from the lighting to the costumes, the art and the music. I really like that the Shen Yun company is multinational, yet bound together. Just as in the music, classical music and modern Western music come together and blend in harmony so seamlessly that listeners notice nothing; listening to the music, you feel peace, people feel closer and love one another more, and the stress of daily life disappears. I feel I have reached something that I had not found in all the programs I’ve watched until now”, saxophonist Tu Ba Thanh said.

Indeed, emotions beyond words allow everyone to find a voice from within their own soul and, more than that, to resonate with the many souls turning toward the genuine values of humanity. As stage director Nguyen Phi Tuan shared: “This is a refined, quintessential beauty, truly admirable. And I think that watching it gives us a feeling of great ease in the soul. It makes us forget the pressures of life so that we can find something more peaceful, feel lighter in spirit, think better thoughts and turn more toward goodness”.

Moved after learning about Shen Yun’s art, right during the program poet Le Anh Dung wrote a poem about the beauty of Shen Yun:

“The beauty of angels dancing
Will pass through five thousand years
The symphony spreads far
Echoing through heaven and earth.

Through the rhythm of the body
Rising through so many souls
Through the world’s vast changes
Uniting yin and yang, Asia and Europe.

Culture transcends the ages
When humanity is uplifted
Crossing every border marker
For a humanity at peace.

Dance is the bearing
Of body and of soul
Movements create expression
The sacred love of homeland.”

Ms. Nguyen Thi Thu Ha – working at the School Equipment and Office Furniture Company – vowed to be a bridge bringing Shen Yun to more people:

“If I have the honor of being a bridge to bring this art to my family and friends, I think the first thing I want to tell them is to come to Shen Yun and feel the pinnacle of the art of dance”.

“When Shen Yun comes to Vietnam, I will certainly introduce it to many people in the arts as well as ordinary people, because the artistic soul of Shen Yun has reached every soul.” – Mr. Vo Que, former Chairman of the Trade Union of the Thua Thien Hue Union of Literature and Arts Associations, now head of the Hue Singing Club, did not forget to add a sincere and hopeful message: “I hope the company will consider our city of Hue so that Shen Yun can win the hearts of the people of Hue.”