BWW Reviews: Shen Yun 2015- A Visual Feast for Your Eyes!

Shen Yun 2015/choreography by Yungchia Chen, Michelle Ren, & others/original music by Jing Xian, Junyi Tan, & others /Dolby Theatre/thru January 25, 2015 (see their website for more southern California tour dates)

Be prepared for your eyes to be dazzled by the precision artistry that this 100-member Shen Yun Performing Arts Company brings to Shen Yun 2015, their two hour-plus program of dances based on ancient Chinese legends and heroes. Vibrant videos of saturated color on the 30-foot high backdrops combined with the elaborately detailed and bright traditional Chinese costuming make for an explosion of bodies and hues in perpetual motion.

The gong sounds and the show begins with the curtains rising to reveal a stage full of white fog as this initial setting represents heaven and the start of eighteen incredible dance performances demonstrating the amazing agility, and synchronized timing of the 60-strong dance troupe. (Think Rockettes; but with males as well as females, more zen, and all covered by yards and yards of flowing fabric.) Novel use of props incorporated in routines made for no room for any split-second mistake. In "Chopsticks Dance of the Mongolian Ladies" and in "In a Village of the Hmong," easy to notice the unison sounds of each ladies' bunches of chopsticks hitting in the former and the jingling of each woman's elaborate silver jewelry in the latter. Stunning videos greatly complemented the telling of the Chinese folklore, especially in "The Fable of the Magic Brush." A rescued maiden gives her gallant savior a magic brush that turns whatever he paints into reality. Whenever the savior brings his brush to the video screen, whatever object he paints becomes a cartoon in motion in the screen. When the maiden and her savior jump off the upstage platform into the ocean in the video, they become animated figures swimming underwater and flying in the skies. Simply gorgeous stage magic!

Some of the more outstanding numbers incorporated: the acrobatic soldiers in "Capturing Arrows with boats of Straw;" the tumbling Buddhist monks in "Mighty Monk;" the square cloth-spinning maidens in "Handkerchief Blossoms;" the 180-degree splitting shepherds with their twirling capes in "Spirit of the Yi."

The talented lead dancers throughout the show include Vicki Cao, Songtao Feng, Rocky Liao, Cheryl Lin, Lily Wang and Jason Zhu.

The 40-piece Shen Yun Symphony Orchestra ably led by conductor Milen Nachev utilizes both western and Chinese instruments, with Lu Sun a soloing stand-out on her erhu, a two-stringed Chinese instrument. Three ladies with beautiful strong operatic voices also received their individual moments in the spotlight - Min Jiang, Yuan Ling, and Guang Ling.

The charming Kelly Wen and Leeshai Lemish both made for the perfect emcees introducing in alternating English and Mandarin each succeeding number.

A must-see for those with an appreciation of Chinese culture as Shen Yun 2015's geared for the western audiences.

www.shenyun.com/la