Shen Yun, 25/01/2019
Shen Yun Performing Arts - 2019 UK Tour
Shen Yun Performing Arts is the promotional face of the Falun Gong spiritual movement. Falun Gong is something between a philosophy and a religion, a little difficult to quantify. I wouldn't go as far as to call it a cult, its relationship with its adherents doesn't appear to be that pernicious. On the other hand, it has a reclusive leader/guru, and its values are very conservative - inclusive, it is not. The original movement began in the early 90s, and at first was at least tolerated, if not outright supported, by the Chinese government, but by the end of the decade, it was becoming too popular, and the authorities cracked down on the movement and its practitioners. Shen Yun Performing Arts, and its associated school, Fei Tian Academy, were founded in New York in 2006 by Falun Gong-practising emigres from China, while the movement's leader has lived in New York since 1996. In the years since its inception, the Shen Yun company has gone from one troupe to six, on the model of Cirque du Soleil, touring internationally on an almost constant basis, and in recent years, the media barrage has become rather startling.
There's no denying that the adverts are enticing, and between those, and a little word of mouth from a Canadian friend, I wanted to see this show when it finally came to a theatre near me. It's presented as a sequence of numbers, mostly dance, some telling stories from Chinese legends, others more abstract dance numbers, and the numbers are introduced by a pair of presenters, one mainly in Chinese, the other in English - or, I presume, the vernacular when they visit other countries. There's no actual scenery, but high resolution, computer-generated, 3D backdrops, that are partially animated - many scenes of lakeside palaces, with visibly rippling waters - and which permit some rather entertaining special effects, allowing characters to apparently drop in and out of the stage area as the story requires.
The legendary stories were entertaining; how Monkey saves a Queen from the evil Scorpion, how a dim-witted monk saves his brethren from marauders, a happy-end version of the tale of the Butterfly Lovers, amongst others. The 'classical' dances made ingenious use of props, such as fans, porcelain vases, and the colourful costumes themselves, with choreography designed to show off the swirling skirts and long sleeves of the girls' clothing. There were two numbers designated as "ethnic" dances. I wouldn't presume to voice an opinion regarding the number attributed to the Yi people, but I doubt very much there was anything genuinely ethnic about the Mongolian number. There were two 'modern' numbers, which were blatantly connected to Falun Gong's ethos, and two instrumental numbers, to which I'll return in a moment.
The most impressive thing about the dancing isn't the tumbling involved, although that certainly adds a touch of pzazz to the proceedings, it's the precision of the ensemble. When there's a full group of men or women on stage - approximately fifteen of each, although they never really dance together, not in the traditional dances - they move with a degree of synchronicity that would put many of our Western ballet corps to shame. They're performing to a live orchestra that blends Western symphonic instruments with traditional Chinese instruments, in all categories except (I think) the brass. The music is not especially memorable, but has a certain filmic quality to it that works quite well, although there's a bad habit of pushing a few bars past what sounds (and looks) like the natural end to each number. It is nice, though, to have live music, when so many shows rely on pre-recorded soundtracks. The instrumental interlude for erhu and piano was rather appealing, the sound of this two-stringed Chinese instrument plangently attractive.
However, the show as a whole makes a rather catastrophic mistake with its finale. First comes an 'aria' of sorts, a semi-westernised, undistinguished song, with a text that I hope reads better in Chinese than it does in English, delivered by a tenor over whose singing it is best to draw a discreet veil. The party sitting in the row in front of me was valiantly trying to suppress their laughter; I could only cringe. Then came the second of the two "modern" numbers. The first, which had come near the end of the first half, was a melodramatic tale of a Falun Gong member arrested and tortured for her faith, in particular subject to organ harvesting, which is a very touchy subject for the Chinese authorities. The girl is released, blinded and crippled, and returned to her mother's care where, thanks to her staunch refusal to recant, she is blessed by a miracle and recovers sight and health. Okay, twee, but tolerable.
However, the second number was more of the same, and it confirmed the impression I got from the first number. These excursions into propagandistic dance have almost exactly the same flavour as archetypal Communist ballet from the 50s or 60s. The dance style may be a bit different, but the mode is identical. During the first number, something reminded me of The Red Detachment of Women, so carefully reconstructed, at least in part, by Mark Morris for John Adams's Nixon in China. That impression was reinforced in the second number, in which the Falun Gong practitioners are waving a large yellow book. It might as well be a Little Red Book. Aside from the religious elements, the miracles - in the second number, it's the deflection of a tsunami - these bright, healthy, righteous young folk, unjustly abused but ultimately triumphant, also remind me of the foremost Soviet ballets - The Age of Gold, or The Bolt, amongst others. It seems almost perverse to be using the same tools as the very regime against which you are protesting. This was a very poor way to end the evening, the dance element was not nearly as spectacular as some of the previous examples, and did nothing to restore confidence in the quality of the show after the awful sung number.
There's another fundamental issue with this show. It looks great, the video effects are well done and entertaining, the legends, and the story-telling is often enjoyable, and the standard of dancing is excellent, but for all the smiling faces and the pyrotechnics, there's a lack of pure excitement to this presentation. I expect to be transported by the dance; it's the most physical of all the art forms, especially with this type which has a clear acrobatic element to it, and it should prompt a real thrill when it's properly delivered. This was a very polished, very handsome production, but it never quite touched that visceral nerve. I compared Shen Yun to Cirque du Soleil earlier, in terms of logistics, but it shares another aspect with that organisation, which I have also seen - it doesn't live up to its promise.
[Next : 26th January]
Shen Yun Performing Arts is the promotional face of the Falun Gong spiritual movement. Falun Gong is something between a philosophy and a religion, a little difficult to quantify. I wouldn't go as far as to call it a cult, its relationship with its adherents doesn't appear to be that pernicious. On the other hand, it has a reclusive leader/guru, and its values are very conservative - inclusive, it is not. The original movement began in the early 90s, and at first was at least tolerated, if not outright supported, by the Chinese government, but by the end of the decade, it was becoming too popular, and the authorities cracked down on the movement and its practitioners. Shen Yun Performing Arts, and its associated school, Fei Tian Academy, were founded in New York in 2006 by Falun Gong-practising emigres from China, while the movement's leader has lived in New York since 1996. In the years since its inception, the Shen Yun company has gone from one troupe to six, on the model of Cirque du Soleil, touring internationally on an almost constant basis, and in recent years, the media barrage has become rather startling.
There's no denying that the adverts are enticing, and between those, and a little word of mouth from a Canadian friend, I wanted to see this show when it finally came to a theatre near me. It's presented as a sequence of numbers, mostly dance, some telling stories from Chinese legends, others more abstract dance numbers, and the numbers are introduced by a pair of presenters, one mainly in Chinese, the other in English - or, I presume, the vernacular when they visit other countries. There's no actual scenery, but high resolution, computer-generated, 3D backdrops, that are partially animated - many scenes of lakeside palaces, with visibly rippling waters - and which permit some rather entertaining special effects, allowing characters to apparently drop in and out of the stage area as the story requires.
The legendary stories were entertaining; how Monkey saves a Queen from the evil Scorpion, how a dim-witted monk saves his brethren from marauders, a happy-end version of the tale of the Butterfly Lovers, amongst others. The 'classical' dances made ingenious use of props, such as fans, porcelain vases, and the colourful costumes themselves, with choreography designed to show off the swirling skirts and long sleeves of the girls' clothing. There were two numbers designated as "ethnic" dances. I wouldn't presume to voice an opinion regarding the number attributed to the Yi people, but I doubt very much there was anything genuinely ethnic about the Mongolian number. There were two 'modern' numbers, which were blatantly connected to Falun Gong's ethos, and two instrumental numbers, to which I'll return in a moment.
The most impressive thing about the dancing isn't the tumbling involved, although that certainly adds a touch of pzazz to the proceedings, it's the precision of the ensemble. When there's a full group of men or women on stage - approximately fifteen of each, although they never really dance together, not in the traditional dances - they move with a degree of synchronicity that would put many of our Western ballet corps to shame. They're performing to a live orchestra that blends Western symphonic instruments with traditional Chinese instruments, in all categories except (I think) the brass. The music is not especially memorable, but has a certain filmic quality to it that works quite well, although there's a bad habit of pushing a few bars past what sounds (and looks) like the natural end to each number. It is nice, though, to have live music, when so many shows rely on pre-recorded soundtracks. The instrumental interlude for erhu and piano was rather appealing, the sound of this two-stringed Chinese instrument plangently attractive.
However, the show as a whole makes a rather catastrophic mistake with its finale. First comes an 'aria' of sorts, a semi-westernised, undistinguished song, with a text that I hope reads better in Chinese than it does in English, delivered by a tenor over whose singing it is best to draw a discreet veil. The party sitting in the row in front of me was valiantly trying to suppress their laughter; I could only cringe. Then came the second of the two "modern" numbers. The first, which had come near the end of the first half, was a melodramatic tale of a Falun Gong member arrested and tortured for her faith, in particular subject to organ harvesting, which is a very touchy subject for the Chinese authorities. The girl is released, blinded and crippled, and returned to her mother's care where, thanks to her staunch refusal to recant, she is blessed by a miracle and recovers sight and health. Okay, twee, but tolerable.
However, the second number was more of the same, and it confirmed the impression I got from the first number. These excursions into propagandistic dance have almost exactly the same flavour as archetypal Communist ballet from the 50s or 60s. The dance style may be a bit different, but the mode is identical. During the first number, something reminded me of The Red Detachment of Women, so carefully reconstructed, at least in part, by Mark Morris for John Adams's Nixon in China. That impression was reinforced in the second number, in which the Falun Gong practitioners are waving a large yellow book. It might as well be a Little Red Book. Aside from the religious elements, the miracles - in the second number, it's the deflection of a tsunami - these bright, healthy, righteous young folk, unjustly abused but ultimately triumphant, also remind me of the foremost Soviet ballets - The Age of Gold, or The Bolt, amongst others. It seems almost perverse to be using the same tools as the very regime against which you are protesting. This was a very poor way to end the evening, the dance element was not nearly as spectacular as some of the previous examples, and did nothing to restore confidence in the quality of the show after the awful sung number.
There's another fundamental issue with this show. It looks great, the video effects are well done and entertaining, the legends, and the story-telling is often enjoyable, and the standard of dancing is excellent, but for all the smiling faces and the pyrotechnics, there's a lack of pure excitement to this presentation. I expect to be transported by the dance; it's the most physical of all the art forms, especially with this type which has a clear acrobatic element to it, and it should prompt a real thrill when it's properly delivered. This was a very polished, very handsome production, but it never quite touched that visceral nerve. I compared Shen Yun to Cirque du Soleil earlier, in terms of logistics, but it shares another aspect with that organisation, which I have also seen - it doesn't live up to its promise.
[Next : 26th January]