Shen Yun reviews

[antonijan]

Debating whether to see it but $80 is the cheapest Tix and don't really wanna see any propaganda...ish shows if i gotta shell this much money but it surely does look spectacular. I wouldn't mind adding it to my "repertoire" of theatrical experiences besides opera, symphony, and the various broadway musical genres. Seems like the commercial every year is the same but they added the live orch last 2 years ago and supposedly more energetic performances this year.  Any Thoughts?

[Dancingthrulife2]

But it IS propaganda. I got a dvd of one of their performances a few years ago, and almost everything in their performance is about how the Chinese Communist Party prosecuted and abused them and how they eventually overpowered the party. Personally, I would prefer something more nuanced and less black and white. Not sure if the programming has been changed though.

[lambchop2]

No, don't waste your money. It's not worth it. I was unfortunate enough to fall for the commercials and endless posters and advertisements, and it was.... a bizarre and strange night.

About 1/3 of the performances consisted of women in colorful dresses with big sleeves swishing around in almost identical dances--visually pretty but nothing spectacular or interesting about them. If you've seen the commercials, then you've seen all there is to know about the dances. It's worth noting that the big colorful screen in the videos is quite pixelated and somewhat dingy in the actual show. Another 1/3 consisted of propaganda dance-performances talking about the suppression of the Falun Gong religion, including "comedic" skits where the Falun Gong practitioners triumph over the caricature Red Guards with the power of their religion, as well as "emotional" performances with beatings and arrests. The rest were a combination of some actually interesting performances using props (fans, drums, ribbons) and then 2 very... very... horrible "opera" performances, which were sung in Chinese with subtitles projected overhead. The lyrics included such gems as "Interracial marriage is against nature," "Atheism is the devil's tool," "Homosexuality will destroy the world." The show ended with a triumph of the formerly oppressed Falun Gong characters over the Red Guards, who saw the error of their ways and joined them, with the Falun Gong practitioners holding up a sign that said FALUN GONG IS THE ONLY TRUE RELIGION at the end.

Not worth $80 or even $20.

[Christoph]

Holy Cow!  It looked a bit interesting on the advertisements, but a friend's wife gave him tickets to take an out of town visitor when it came through the Kennedy Center a few years ago.  He absolutely hated it - said it was godawful and the visitor despised it as well.  He never elaborated, but if it is close to the description you just gave, I can see why.

[JudyDenmark]

This is from 2014, but is VERY telling. (Echoes the propaganda that others have said above.) Don't waste your money!

http://irreverentpsychologist.blogspot.com/2014/03/shen-yun-first-time-i-left-performance.html

[Scarywarhol]

I always wonder about the onslaught of advertising for this show. Fascinating...

[Call_me_jorge]

My dad spent nearly 200 dollars on tickets for this when it’s in Chicago and I wanted to slam my head in the door.

[SweetLips]

Took my elderly Mum because of the adverts and it was pretty.......boring.

Exactly as lambchop2 says.

Have a gay friend who is a butcher who we call 'lambchop' .

[mpkie]

My mom almost bought us tickets one year and I told her to hold on while I did some research. So glad I did.

There are constant commercials depicting attendees ("attendees"?) shilling for the show on the Chinese news/entertainment cable channels that my parents watch on every commercial cycle. They must be flushed with cash.

[Call_me_jorge]

I just wanted to share the wording of their description of etiquette: “ETIQUETTE: During the performance, please express enthusiasm with applause, not whistling or cheering. Thanks!”-the THANKS is the best part. Then, other “IMPORTANT INFORMATION: Buying tickets from online scalpers or websites not linked to this page is not a good idea. Those tickets are likely invalid.”

edit: this one too. 

Wherever Shen Yun Goes Theaters Are Packed:

Some people fly from other countries or drive hundreds of miles to see it. Others see the same show five or six times. Why? Many say there are no words to describe it—you have to see it with your own eyes.

[Fordham2015]

One of the subway ads quotes Donna Karan, which should sell a ton of tickets after the Weinstein thing- not!

[nmlhats]

Well....if you can get cheap tix on Gold Star or something, you might give it a try. It's possibly worth seeing just for its complete weirdness...total propaganda and everyone in it is basically in a cult...the scenery and dancing are nice but the whole shtick with the hosts is really bizarre. The first few minutes are nice and then they start with the political indoctrination.

If anyone has ever seen the opera Nixon in China or seen film of Madame Mao's "ballet" ("The Red Detachment of Women", this is basically the opposite version!

[antonijan]

Wow!!! Thanks for saving me $80!!! A friend said she wouldn't watch it even if she gets paid to do it!

The programming and brainwashing is horrendous! I wonder if Amazing Grace is as horrible as it is Prince of Egypt on the other hand was good...just don't take it seriously

And actually considering going to Denmark.

Thnx for the great feedback

Dancingthrulife2
Lambchop2
Christoph
JudyDwnmark
Call_me_jorge
Sweetlips
Mpkie
Fordham2015

Maybe broadway or off broadway can spoof shenyun, scientology and other cults like bom

Something Rotten did a good job spoofing xtianity and the (spoiler)

Flamboyant priest was hilarious!!!