PureInsight | May 23, 2013
[PureInsight.org] In the world of performing arts, as I understand, the brand Shen Yun is said to be a top tier show. It has three companies that have already performed this year in North America, South America, Europe, and Asia. The performances have attracted full house after full house, achieving wonders in the box office. The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has tried to cause disturbances for the performances in Germany, Belgium and Korea. Just like in the past few years, their despicable tactics have been repeatedly thwarted.
On March 4th, 2013, the two Frankfurt media companies that sponsored Shen Yun Performing Arts received phone calls from the consulate general of the CCP in Frankfurt. The menacing nature of the phone calls left the management of both companies astonished. Yet, having a deep understanding of Shen Yun, the sponsors didn’t pay any heed to the consulate’s irrational pressure, instead expressing their continued support for the company’s performances. One media company manager expressed, “This is Germany—we have freedom of speech. What we want to do is our business.”
It’s not the first time the Frankfurt Chinese consulate interfered with Shen Yun’s local performances. Every year since 2008, the Chinese consulate has exerted pressure on the Century Hall Theatre not to lease the venue to Shen Yun’s sponsors. Each time, their senseless demands were met with complete refusal by theater supervisors.
I believe the attention and grand approval that Shen Yun has received across the world have formed a clear contrast between their performances and the CCP’s repulsive parallel shows, which are put on in an attempt to draw the audience away. Public figures in freedom-advocating countries, such as Michael Meister and Edward McMillan-Scott from Europe, have expressed positive feedback on Shen Yun’s shows.
Michael Meister, German congressman and Deputy Chairman of the CDU/CSU parliamentary group, has watched Shen Yun’s performances twice. He expressed that watching Shen Yun “is a time to be enthralled and touched. [It’s] a truly unique cultural exchange between China and Europe.” “They imparted to the audience such rich Chinese culture,” he added.
On February 26th this year, when Shen Yun arrived in Europe, the European Parliament held an honorary reception for European Union staff members, while also welcoming the arrival of the New York-based performing arts group. The reception host, European Parliament Vice-Chairman and British Member of Parliament, Edward McMillan-Scott, has witnessed Shen Yun’s performances many times. He was full of praise for the programs: “What Shen Yun represents is thousands of years of Chinese Culture.” Regarding the interference the CCP causes for Shen Yun’s performances, he expressed, “Art allows people to throw away their differences and enjoy their common culture. This is also precisely what the Chinese Communist Party is afraid of.”
On March 11th, Shen Yun Performing Arts arrived in Brussels, Belgium for a series of four performances over three days. When tickets were on the verge of selling out, the Chinese Communist Party consulate stationed in Belgium exerted pressure on the Walloon-Brussels Theater (WBT), an upper governmental agency which oversees the management of the Brussels National Theatre, including the budgeting for all brands that perform. However, the state theater insisted on the legitimacy of Shen Yun’s performances, expressing, “We have a business contract (with Shen Yun). Belgium is an independent society. The theater respects the right of freedom of expression.”
A similar scene took place in Asia. During the beginning of April, Shen Yun was scheduled to perform in Korea’s five biggest cities. Each theater was selling performance tickets at a hot-rate. Several officials of the Chinese embassy in Korea infiltrated these cities, exerting pressure on government employees and the theater management. The embassy officials used many kinds of excuses and threats in an attempt to obstruct Shen Yun’s performances, however, their actions were met with stern rejections, one after another. Through this incident, the Korean society also came to witness the poor image of the Chinese communist diplomats.
Since its 2006 global tour, I feel Shen Yun Performing Arts has displayed the deep, inner content of China’s divine culture through its pure and beautiful onstage performances, thus receiving high praise from audiences in America, Europe, and Asia. Before each of their world tours, the CCP organizes various methods to prevent audiences from entering the theater, such as harassing the sponsors of Shen Yun, messing up the ticket hotline, and recruiting exchange students to cause interference. Afterwards, seeing that its actions yield no results, the CCP goes as far as to recruit hoodlums to scare and coerce local governments, parliament, or companies. In January of this year, CCP agents even went to the extent of hiring local hoodlums in Atlanta, USA to deliberately damage Shen Yun’s bus, attempting to make the oil tank explode. Not long beforehand, just prior to the troupe’s performance in Fort Worth, Texas, the CCP also organized vicious operations to damage the oil tank of Shen Yun’s bus, in an attempt to cause a severe accident.
The CCP has even treated Chinese exchange students as hostages, threatening that if colleges continued holding Shen Yun performances, the CCP would “no longer provide the school with exchange students” and that they “would not issue visas for students.” Not only that, but the Chinese consulate had even infiltrated the South Korean government, exerting pressure on the Seoul City Government (Sejoung Center), Ministry of Culture Sports and Tourism, and International Cooperation Division etc., asking them to block Shen Yun’s the performances in Korea.
Facing Shen Yun’s surging popularity, the CCP appears weary from its efforts to disrupt the troupe’s performances. Particularly in mainland China, Shen Yun DVD’s are spreading widely, and many mainland Chinese have become really excited after watching them, proclaiming: “China’s traditional culture has returned. The proper culture of our ancestors has finally returned.” Laughably, the CCP is shamelessly attempting to sell fake Shen Yun DVDs, under the name “Jilin Shen Yun”.
Since Shen Yun Performing Arts started its world tours, I feel that it has displayed the diverse and rich content of China’s divinely inspired culture, providing ethnicities around the world with an artistic feast. I feel the programs are rich and diverse, the audience responds enthusiastically, and that Shen Yun contributes in promoting cultural exchange between the east and the west. So I believe their performances are able to transcend the barriers of different races and religions. Shen Yun has received praise from many governments, congratulations and support from parliaments, and has many cities competing to offer them a venue, calling it ‘a supreme honor’. Regarding the CCP’s actions—which I feel are ridiculous and completely irrational—the people of the free world seem to find it very puzzling that they would pressure another country’s theater and even use violence to interfere with artistic entertainment.
I feel that, China’s 5000-year culture was passed down by the Divine as the orthodox culture of humans. I also feel Shen Yun has displayed orthodox Chinese classical dance and art; the peak embodiment of a pure, good, and beautiful divinely-inspired culture. I experienced in the show, a belief in Gods and Buddhas, a rich content in the concept of the oneness of heaven and humanity, the glory of human nature and the value of life. As I see it, this has all caused the atheist CCP to be restless with fear.
It seems even officials within the CCP can’t help but admire Shen Yun’s performances which I feel are completely good and beautiful. According to reports, on March 6th this year, during the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC)’s group discussion on literature and art, in the CCP’s “two sessions”, Xu Peidong—a CPPCC committee member, famous songwriter and member of the China Overseas Friendship Association—publicly expressed that Shen Yun’s performances were extremely successful in the box office, while the CCP was destroying Chinese culture. He said that in the past several years, the government-subsidized performing art troupes made up of mainland performers had not been successful overseas and could not compete with Shen Yun’s popularity. Xu bluntly characterized the mainland troupes’ overseas performances as “uneven” and a “mess” and said they were damaging the international image of Chinese culture.
With its scandalous record, I feel the CCP has long made a fool of itself internationally and that it is like a fool who spits up into the air: it’s only asking for self-humiliation. I believe the wicked party’s efforts in obstructing Shen Yun are getting more desperate and they are cowardly at heart. As an overseas Chinese said, “What’s so scary about people watching a cultural program? Let’s say I’ve watched it; now what?”
Shen Yun is touring the world every year and I feel they are awakening the good, calming people’s hearts, and leading the world to a great new future. I think their unbelievably beautiful and exquisite performances guide people to a new understanding of Chinese culture, and enlighten the world’s people to Gods’ and Buddhas' intent to save sentient beings.
Translated From: http://www.zhengjian.org/node/117320
