Shen Yun Performing Arts (Chinese: 神韻藝術團; lit. 'divine rhythm arts troupe') is a United States–based non-profit performing arts and entertainment company that tours internationally, producing performances including dance and symphonic music.[1][2] It is operated by the Falun Gong new religious movement.[3] Shen Yun is composed of eight large performing ensembles,[4] with a total of approximately 480 performers.[5] Shen Yun has performed in front of millions[6] and has toured more than 200 cities across Europe, North America, Oceania, and Asia.[4][6][7]
Company type | Private nonprofit organization |
---|---|
Industry | Dance, symphony orchestra |
Founded | August 16, 2006 |
Founder | Practitioners of Falun Gong |
Headquarters | Deerpark, New York, U.S. |
Area served | International |
Revenue | 45,965,964 United States dollar (2022) |
Total assets | 228,580,466 United States dollar (2022) |
Divisions | New York Company, International Company, Touring Company, World Company |
Website | www |
Shen Yun | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Traditional Chinese | 神韻藝術團 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Simplified Chinese | 神韵艺术团 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Literal meaning | "Divine rhythm arts troupe" | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Shen Yun was founded in 2006 by Chinese expatriate adherents of Falun Gong, and is based at the Dragon Springs compound in Deerpark, New York, near where the group's leader Li Hongzhi and his followers reside.[8][9][10] Falun Gong adherents pay to rent the performance venue, promote the show, and sell tickets. After expenses are covered through ticket sales, proceeds go to Shen Yun.[1] The finances of Shen Yun and Falun Gong appear to be linked, with technically separate corporations sharing funds, executives and the same mission.[3] Li Hongzhi describes the Shen Yun performance as a means of "saving" audiences.[1]
Shen Yun's performances have been described as promoting sectarian doctrines and negative views of evolution and atheism.[11] The group is promoted by The Epoch Times, a far-right media outlet affiliated with Falun Gong.[3][12] In 2019, an NBC News assessment concluded that the Epoch Media Group and Shen Yun "make up the outreach effort of Falun Gong".[3] The Chinese government bars Shen Yun from performing in China, as it considers Falun Gong to be an "anti-society cult" and has attempted to cancel its performances abroad by pressuring theaters and governments.[13][14]
Falun Gong and Dragon Springs compound
Shen Yun operates out of Falun Gong's headquarters in the 427-acre (1.73 km2) Dragon Springs compound in Deerpark, New York, where it has large rehearsal spaces. Dragon Springs is registered as a religious property under the church name Dragon Springs Buddhist.[15] The exact financial and structural connections between Falun Gong, Shen Yun, and The Epoch Times remain unclear. According to NBC News: "The Epoch Media Group, along with Shen Yun, a dance troupe known for its ubiquitous advertising and unsettling performances, make up the outreach effort of Falun Gong, a relatively new spiritual practice that combines ancient Chinese meditative exercises, mysticism and often ultraconservative cultural worldviews. Falun Gong's founder has referred to Epoch Media Group as "our media", and the group's practice heavily informs The Epoch Times' coverage, according to former employees who spoke with NBC News. The Epoch Times, digital production company New Tang Dynasty Television and the heavily advertised dance troupe Shen Yun make up the nonprofit network that Li calls "our media". Financial documents paint a complicated picture of more than a dozen technically separate organizations that appear to share missions, money and executives."[3]
History
In 2006, a group of expatriate Chinese Falun Gong practitioners living in North America founded Shen Yun in New York.[16] The stated purpose of the company was to revive Chinese culture and traditions from the time before the Chinese Communist Revolution.[17][18] In a journal article analyzing Falun Gong’s geopolitics, scholar Weihsuan Lin wrote: "Shen Yun’s ‘reviving five thousand years of civilization’ attempts to question and separate the entanglement between the Party and the State; it enacts, globally, an alternative geopolitical discourse in which a culturally rich and prosperous China without the CCP existed in the past and is coming again in the near future."[19]
In 2007, the company conducted its first tour with 90 dancers, musicians, soloists, and production staff.[20] Early shows were titled "Chinese Spectacular",[8][9] "Holiday Wonders",[21] "Chinese New Year Splendor", and "Divine Performing Arts", but now the company performs exclusively under the name "Shen Yun". By 2009, Shen Yun had developed three full companies and orchestras that toured the world simultaneously. By the end of the 2010 season, approximately one million people had seen the troupes perform.[6]
Shen Yun, the media organization The Epoch Times, and a variety of other organizations operate as extensions of Falun Gong. Los Angeles–based investigative reporter Samuel Braslow described Shen Yun's background in March 2020: "Both Shen Yun and Epoch Times are funded and operated by members of Falun Gong, a controversial spiritual group that was banned by China's government in 1999 [...] Falun Gong melds traditional Taoist principles with occasionally bizarre pronouncements from its Chinese-born founder and leader, Li Hongzhi. Among other pronouncements, Li has claimed that aliens started invading human minds in the beginning of the 20th century, leading to mass corruption and the invention of computers. He has also denounced feminism and homosexuality and claimed he can walk through walls and levitate. But the central tenet of the group's wide-ranging belief system is its fierce opposition to communism. In 2000, Li founded Epoch Times to disseminate Falun Gong talking points to American readers. Six years later he launched Shen Yun as another vehicle to promote his teachings to mainstream Western audiences. Over the years Shen Yun and Epoch Times, while nominally separate organizations, have operated in tandem in Falun Gong's ongoing PR campaign against the Chinese government, taking directions from Li."[14] Editor Chris Jennewein of MyNewsLA wrote that Los Angeles Magazine was sued for defamation in May 2020 by the Epoch Times, referring to Braslow's news report.[22] Los Angeles Magazine pulled the piece from their website in July, as ordered by federal judge George H. Wu, and published a retraction notice in the September 2020 issue of the magazine.[23][24]
Billing and promotion
Shen Yun promotes itself as "a presentation of traditional Chinese culture as it once was: a study in grace, wisdom, and virtues distilled from five millennia of Chinese civilization". The company is described in promotions as reviving Chinese culture following a period of assault and destruction under the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).
Shen Yun is heavily promoted in major cities with commercials, billboards, and brochures displayed in the streets and in businesses, as well as in television and radio profiles. According to Jia Tolentino of The New Yorker, "The ads have to be both ubiquitous and devoid of content so that they can convince more than a million people to pay good money to watch what is, essentially, religious-political propaganda—or, more generously, an extremely elaborate commercial for Falun Dafa’s spiritual teachings and its plight vis-à-vis the Chinese Communist regime."[11]
Shen Yun performances are often presented or sponsored by regional Falun Gong groups,[25][26] which has been labeled a "cult" and banned by the Chinese government.[16][27] Some audience members have objected to the show's promotion strategy, which does not note the religious- and political-themed content of the performance.[28][29] Jim Kershner of The Spokesman-Review reported that while the show contained "a religious-political message", "[t]he vast majority of the show, however, has no overt message. It is dedicated mainly to keeping alive the traditional forms of Chinese music and dance that were suppressed during the Cultural Revolution of the 1960s and in subsequent decades."[30] Chicago Tribune’s Gisela Orozco also noted that Shen Yun offered, "in a few passages, critical allusions to the communism that governs its country of origin, but without abounding on the subject."[31]
In 2021, the troupe began billing its shows as "China Before Communism".[32]
Content
Dance
Large-scale group dance is at the center of Shen Yun productions.[9] Each touring company consists of about 40 male and female dancers, who mainly perform classical Chinese dances, making extensive use of acrobatic and tumbling techniques, forms and postures.[33][34]
Shen Yun's repertoire draws on stories from Chinese history and legends, such as the legend of Mulan,[35] Journey to the West and Outlaws of the Marsh. It also depicts "the story of Falun Gong today".[36] During the 2010 production, at least two of the 16 scenes depicted "persecution and murder of Falun Gong practitioners" in contemporary China, including the beating of a young mother to death, and the jailing of a Falun Gong protester. In addition to classical Han Chinese dance, Shen Yun also includes elements of Yi, Miao, Tibetan and Mongolian dance.
Shen Yun performs three core elements of classical Chinese dance: bearing (emotion, cultural and ethnic flavor), form (expressive movements and postures), and technical skill (physical techniques of jumping, flipping, and leaping).[8] Shen Yun choreographer Vina Lee has stated that some of the distinct Chinese bearing (yun) has been "lost in the process" since the cultural changes of the Chinese Communist Revolution.[8]
Music
Shen Yun dances are accompanied by Chinese instruments: the pipa, suona, dizi, guzheng, and a variety of Chinese percussion instruments. A full Western orchestra leads the melodies.[6][37] There are solo performances featuring Chinese instruments such as the erhu in between dances.[8][38] Interspersed between dance sequences, other than the erhu performances, are operatic singers performing songs which sometimes invoke spiritual or religious themes, including references to the Falun Gong faith.[6][39] A performance in 2007, for instance, included a reference to the Chakravartin, a figure in Buddhism who turns the wheel of Dharma.[40]
The music for Shen Yun was composed by Jing Xian and Junyi Tan. Three of Shen Yun's performers—flutist Ningfang Chen, erhuist Mei Xuan and tenor Guan Guimin—were recipients of the Chinese Ministry of Culture's "National First Class Performer" awards. Prior to joining Shen Yun, Guan Guimin was well known in China for his work on soundtracks for more than 50 movies and television shows. Other notable performers include erhu soloist Xiaochun Qi.[41]
Costume and backdrops
Shen Yun's dancers perform wearing intricate costumes, often accompanied by a variety of props.[8][6] Some costumes are intended to imitate the dress of various ethnicities, while others depict ancient Chinese court dancers, soldiers, or characters from classic stories.[8] Props include colorful handkerchiefs, drums,[8] fans, chopsticks, or silk scarves.[36][42]
Each Shen Yun piece is set against a digitally projected backdrop, usually depicting landscapes such as Mongolian grasslands, imperial courts, ancient villages, temples, or mountains.[6][43][44] Some backdrops contain moving elements, such as digital versions of the dancers, that integrate with the performance.[42]
Tours
Shen Yun's eight companies tour for six months each year, performing in over 130 cities in North America, Europe, Asia, Australia, and Latin America.[6] Notable venues include the David H. Koch Theater at New York's Lincoln Center in Manhattan;[45] the London Coliseum in London, England; the Dutch National Opera and Ballet in Amsterdam, Netherlands;[46] and the Kennedy Center Opera House in Washington, D.C. By the conclusion of Shen Yun's 2010 performance, an estimated one million people had seen the performance worldwide.[6]
Shen Yun does not perform in China and the Chinese government has attempted to cancel Shen Yun performances elsewhere through political pressure exerted by its foreign embassies and consulates.[47][48][49][50] Chinese diplomats have also sent letters to elected officials in the West exhorting them not to attend or otherwise support the performance, which they describe as "propaganda" intended to "smear China's image."[51][52] Members of the CCP's top political consultative body, the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, have also expressed concern that China's state-funded arts troupes have been less popular internationally than Shen Yun.[53] Shen Yun representatives say the Chinese government's opposition to the show stems from its depictions of modern-day political oppression in China, and that it includes expressions of traditional Chinese cultural history that the CCP government has tried to suppress.[54]
Shen Yun was scheduled to perform in Hong Kong in January 2010, but the event was cancelled after the government refused entry visas to Shen Yun's production crew.[55] Attempts to shut down the show have also been reported by theatres and local governments in various countries including Ecuador, Ireland, Germany and Sweden.[56]
Symphony orchestra
In October 2012, Shen Yun's symphony orchestra made its debut performance at Carnegie Hall in New York. The performance featured conductors Milen Nachev, Keng-Wei Kuo, and Antonia Joy Wilson, and the program included both classical works such as Beethoven's Egmont Overture and Antonio Vivaldi's Concerto in C Major, as well as original compositions that fuse Chinese and Western instruments.[57]
In 2013, the symphony orchestra toured seven American cities. In addition to Carnegie Hall, it performed at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C.[58] In 2023, the orchestra made its debut at David Geffen Hall in New York, with classical works and original compositions.[59][third-party source needed]
Reception
Sid Smith of Chicago Tribune wrote that a 2008 Shen Yun performance was "more uneven" than other cultural performances he had seen, but that the women dancers were "a beautiful and haunting ensemble" with "a nimble mastery of traditional talents."[42] Sarah Crompton of The Daily Telegraph wrote of a 2008 Shen Yun performance: "This show is advertised as a Chinese spectacular – a kind of Eastern version of Cirque du Soleil. It is nothing of the kind. Acrobatics, singing and dancing skills are used in the service of a propaganda exercise on the part of Falun Gong ... But what I really object to is that such a politically motivated performance is being smuggled on to stages around Europe in the name of family entertainment."[60]
Regina Weinreich wrote in a HuffPost blog that Shen Yun's debut at Lincoln Center in 2011 "enacts the rich cultural heritage of China" and noted some descriptions of oppression in the performance.[54] Fashion designer Donna Karan and her Urban Zen foundation hosted celebrities at an opening night and said, "I love when it gets into the soul".[61] Laura Falcoff, writing in the Argentinian newspaper Clarín, described Shen Yun in 2012 as a "spectacular production that beautifully combines China's ancient traditions with cutting-edge technological advancements" and called it an "ideal performance for audiences of all ages, especially children."[62] Carmen Del Val of the Spanish newspaper El País wrote that a 2014 performance was "an explosion of color and energy".[63] Rachel Molenda of Charleston Gazette-Mail wrote of a 2015 Shen Yun performance at the Clay Center, where the audience gave a standing ovation, "The pairing of projected backgrounds and animation with real-time performance (dance and orchestral) was surreal. Sometimes I questioned whether the musicians, whose compositions were lovely, were really there."[64] Gisela Orozco of Chicago Tribune wrote that a 2016 Shen Yun performance emphasized "the cultural part and faith that existed before in China," presented "fables told with dance and music, which talk about philosophy, literature and art”, and expressed values “such as loyalty, kindness, bravery, love”.[31]
The 2018 and 2019 performances included lyrics and digital displays disparaging atheism and belief in evolution as "deadly ideas",[11] leading to complaints by some attenders that the shows were "anti-evolution", resembled a "religious sermon", or were "cult propaganda."[65] An article in the Minneapolis Star Tribune said the political message of Shen Yun "feels more like propaganda than straightforwardly presented cultural heritage."[66] Jia Tolentino wrote in The New Yorker that a scene in the show contained homophobia.[11] Alix Martichoux from the Houston Chronicle wrote, "For many disgruntled Shen Yun attendees, it's not necessarily that the show itself is bad – though to be fair, some complain it is. Most of the negative reviews were people upset they were blindsided by the political content."[65] Tolentino described a scene: "Chairman Mao appeared, and the sky turned black; the city in the digital backdrop was obliterated by an earthquake, then finished off by a Communist tsunami. A red hammer and sickle glowed in the center of the wave [...] a huge, bearded face [disappeared] in the water [...] a tsunami with the face of Karl Marx."[11]
Pablo M. Díez of the Spanish newspaper ABC wrote in 2023, "Shen Yun's shows are a dazzling combination of dance and music with synchronized choreography in majestic settings."[67]
In a 2023 Washington Post opinion piece, Emily Needham drew parallels between Shen Yun and Cold War-era U.S. State Department’s cultural diplomacy programs, describing both as being “built on the idea that dance can transcend language differences and build mutual understanding with audiences through a shared cultural experience.” She concluded: “Today’s Shen Yun performances are grand, with a large cast of 180 brilliant dancers, spectacular sets and bright colors. Dance can be beautiful while also performing political arguments. They are not mutually exclusive.”[68]
Abuse of performers
A 2024 New York Times investigation alleged that Shen Yun routinely discouraged performers from seeking medical care for injuries and enforced grueling rehearsal and tour schedules through emotional abuse and manipulation.[69]
Chinese government interference
The Chinese government has attempted to stop the group from performing abroad by pressuring theatre managers[67][70] or sending letters or e-mails to theaters in multiple countries,[71][72] including Ireland, Germany,[73] South Korea[74] and Sweden.[75] According to Shen Yun, the Chinese government also attempted to cancel Shen Yun's performance in Hong Kong by rejecting the entry visas of six members.[76][77]
See also
References
- ^ a b c Junker, Andrew (2019). Becoming Activists in Global China: Social Movements in the Chinese Diaspora. Cambridge University Press. p. 99. ISBN 9781108655897.
- ^ Tigas, Mike; Wei, Sisi; Schwencke, Ken; Roberts, Brandon; Glassford, Alec (9 May 2013). "Shen Yun Performing Arts Inc - Nonprofit Explorer". ProPublica. Archived from the original on 27 February 2020. Retrieved 26 May 2020.
- ^ a b c d e Zadrosny, Brandy; Collins, Ben (20 August 2019). "Trump, QAnon and an impending judgment day: Behind the Facebook-fueled rise of The Epoch Times". NBC News. Retrieved 14 January 2022.
- ^ a b StackCommerce (20 December 2022). "Shen Yun Performing Arts: An American Success Story Inspires Growing Companies". Entrepreneur. Retrieved 30 December 2022.
- ^ "Shen Yun Performing Arts at Queen Elizabeth Theatre". Queen Elizabeth Theatre Canada. Retrieved 23 May 2020.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i Hodara, Susan (13 August 2010). "5,000 Years of Chinese Music and Dance, in One Night". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on 2 February 2023. Retrieved 13 August 2023.
- ^ "Shen Yun 2020". FOX40. 22 November 2019. Retrieved 23 May 2020.
- ^ a b c d e f g h Hunt, Mary Ellen (4 January 2009). "Chinese New Year Spectacular in S.F., Cupertino". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 4 September 2009.
- ^ a b c Wenzel, John (1 October 2007). "Chinese New Year embracing tradition". The Denver Post. Archived from the original on 13 January 2008. Retrieved 5 September 2009.
- ^ Junker, Andrew (2019). Becoming Activists in Global China: Social Movements in the Chinese Diaspora. Cambridge University Press. pp. 99–101. ISBN 9781108655897.
- ^ a b c d e Tolentino, Jia (19 March 2019). "Stepping into the Uncanny, Unsettling World of Shen Yun". The New Yorker. Archived from the original on 24 August 2019. Retrieved 20 March 2019.
- ^ Dowd, Katie (4 January 2021). "Epoch Times, one of Trump's favorite 'news' sources, is linked to Shen Yun". SFGATE. Retrieved 9 July 2023.
- ^ "New York dance troupe says China banned shows over Falun Gong links". TheGuardian.com. 6 May 2016.
- ^ a b Braslow, Samuel (March 2020). "Inside the Shadowy World of Shen Yun and Its Secret Pro-Trump Ties". Los Angeles Magazine. Archived from the original on 26 May 2020. Retrieved 1 July 2023.
- ^ Hill, Michael (April 2019). "Falun Gong US compound's neighbors fret over expansion plans". Associated Press.
- ^ a b Wright, E. Assata (22 December 2011). "Shen Yun returns". Hudson Reporter. Archived from the original on 22 February 2020. Retrieved 22 February 2020.
- ^ "Shen Yun Performing Arts to Return to Lincoln Center, 1/10-19". broadwayworld. Archived from the original on 12 April 2019. Retrieved 22 May 2020.
- ^ Wenzel, John (9 January 2008). "Chinese New Year embracing tradition". The Denver Post. Archived from the original on 20 December 2019. Retrieved 22 May 2020.
- ^ Lin, Weihsuan (15 March 2022). "A China without the Chinese Communist Party: The Geopolitics of the Falun Gong". Geopolitics. 27 (2): 501–525. doi:10.1080/14650045.2020.1787383. ISSN 1465-0045.
- ^ Adriana Rambay Fernandez, Dancing around the world Archived 14 December 2013 at the Wayback Machine, Hudson Reporter, 22 January 2012.
- ^ Higgins, Beau (15 November 2007). "'Holiday Wonders' Chinese Meets West Extravaganza". Broadway World. Retrieved 5 September 2009.
- ^ Jennewein, Chris (26 May 2020). "Epoch Times Files Slander Suit Against Los Angeles Magazine". MyNewsLA. Retrieved 22 October 2023.
- ^ "Judge Orders Los Angeles Magazine to Remove Article from Website". MyNewsLA. 20 July 2020. Retrieved 22 October 2023.
- ^ "Corrections". Los Angeles Magazine. September 2020. p. 10. Retrieved 23 October 2023.
- ^ "Persecuted religious group sponsors Shen Yun". The Newnan Times-Herald. 28 March 2019.
- ^ "Shen Yun". The Kennedy Center.
- ^ Pomfret, John (12 November 1999). "Cracks in China's Crackdown". The Washington Post. Retrieved 2 March 2024.
- ^ Konigsberg, Eric (6 February 2008). "A Glimpse of Chinese Culture That Some Find Hard to Watch". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 22 January 2017. Retrieved 23 February 2017.Dabkowski, Colin (30 May 2010). "Song & dance spectacular not exactly what it seems". Buffalo News. Retrieved 21 June 2010.
- ^ Pousner, Howard (17 January 2012). "Many Atlantans OK with Chinese dance troupe's politics". Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Archived from the original on 30 August 2011. Retrieved 23 April 2012.
- ^ Kershner, Jim (21 May 2009). "Splendor of Shen Yun". The Spokesman-Review. Archived from the original on 18 November 2015.
- ^ a b Orozco, Gisela (17 March 2016). "Shen Yun: La belleza de la cultura china". Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on 27 March 2024.
- ^ "Shen Yun Performing Arts is bring its newest show to Utah". KUTV. Salt Lake City. 6 July 2021. Retrieved 28 November 2021.
- ^ Lindblom, Jeffrey (22 July 2021). "Rapid City hosts Shen Yun, a performance through 5,000 years of Chinese history". blackhillsfox.com. Retrieved 29 October 2023.
- ^ "Shen Yun - 6abc Loves the Arts". 6abc.com. 4 May 2015. Retrieved 29 October 2023.
- ^ "International Incident". The Pacific Northwest Inlander. Archived from the original on 25 May 2009. Retrieved 15 November 2009.
- ^ a b Paula Citron. A dazzling show with a clear message. The Globe and Mail: Arts. 22 January 2008.
- ^ Elina Shatkin. Vina leads Divine Performing Arts' Chinese New Year Spectacular . Los Angeles Times. 1 January 2009.
- ^ Sparacino, Micaele (19 January 2010). "Deities, Dragons, Dancers, and Divas". concertonet.com. Archived from the original on 5 October 2010. Retrieved 29 January 2010.
- ^ Citron, Paula (22 January 2008). "A dazzling show with a clear message". The Globe and Mail. Archived from the original on 10 March 2013. Retrieved 31 October 2012.
- ^ Joel Markowitz, 'January Pleasures' Archived 25 December 2010 at the Wayback Machine, DC Theatre Scene, 28 January 2007.
- ^ Robert Baxter, "New Year show, old traditions preserve Chinese culture," Courier Post, 30 December 2007.
- ^ a b c Smith, Sid (28 January 2008). "Women flow like water in spectacle". Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on 13 December 2013. Retrieved 16 June 2023.
- ^ Goodwyn, Albert (11 January 2007). "Chinese New Year Spectacular". San Francisco Bay Times. Archived from the original on 29 February 2012. Retrieved 5 September 2009.
- ^ Meredith Galante. A Day In The Life Of A Professional Dancer In A Traditional Chinese Company Archived 27 January 2012 at the Wayback Machine. Business Insider. 11 January 2012.
- ^ "Shen Yun Performing Arts" Archived 27 January 2013 at the Wayback Machine David H. Koch Theater.
- ^ "Shen Yun 2014". Theatercollectie. University of Amsterdam. Retrieved 24 October 2024.
- ^ International Religious Freedom Report 2010 Report, 17 November 2010. US Department of State, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor
- ^ Moldova country report Archived 20 February 2020 at the Wayback Machine, 17 November 2010. US Department of State, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor
- ^ Romania country report Archived 20 February 2020 at the Wayback Machine, 17 November 2010. US Department of State, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor
- ^ Ukraine country report Archived 20 February 2020 at the Wayback Machine, 17 November 2010. US Department of State, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor
- ^ Keegan Hamilton, Chinese Government Kindly Reminds Seattle Officials About the 'Evil Cult' Coming to Town Archived 9 February 2012 at the Wayback Machine, Seattle Weekly, 6 February 2012.
- ^ "Chinese New Year Spectacular 'just propaganda': Chinese Embassy", Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. 17 January 2007.
- ^ Li, Raymond (8 March 2013). "State-funded arts troupes fail to shine against Falun Gong rivals abroad". South China Morning Post. Archived from the original on 15 March 2013. Retrieved 26 April 2013.
- ^ a b Weinreich, Regina (24 August 2011). "Beauty and the Beast: Shen Yun at Lincoln Center". The Huffington Post. Archived from the original on 17 March 2023. Retrieved 13 August 2023.
- ^ "Falungong decries HK as democracy row deepens". My Sinchew. Agence France-Presse. 27 January 2010. Archived from the original on 12 November 2016. Retrieved 1 February 2010.
- ^ Hune-Brown, Nicholas (12 December 2017). "The traditional Chinese dance troupe China doesn't want you to see". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 19 December 2017. Retrieved 12 December 2017.
- ^ "Shen Yun Symphony Orchestra". Carnegie Hall. 28 October 2012. Archived from the original on 12 September 2014..
- ^ "Shen Yun Performing Arts to Return to Lincoln Center, 1/10-19". broadwayworld. Archived from the original on 14 November 2018. Retrieved 14 November 2018.
- ^ "Shen Yun Symphony Orchestra". Wu Tsai Theater, David Geffen Hall. Retrieved 22 October 2023.
- ^ Crompton, Sarah (25 February 2008). "Shen Yun: Propaganda as entertainment". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 13 January 2022. Retrieved 17 February 2022.
- ^ Lawrence, Vanessa (24 June 2011). "Shen Yun". W (magazine). Retrieved 2 July 2023.
- ^ Falcoff, Laura (15 December 2012). "El baile de las tradiciones milenarias". Clarín. Archived from the original on 19 December 2012. Retrieved 1 July 2023.
- ^ Del Val, Carmen (11 April 2014). "Bailando por Falun Gong en el TNC". El País. Archived from the original on 26 January 2022. Retrieved 17 June 2023.
- ^ Molenda, Rachel (3 February 2015). "Shen Yun delivers lyrical, storied performance". Charleston Gazette-Mail. Archived from the original on 5 August 2023. Retrieved 22 October 2023.
- ^ a b Martichoux, Alix (21 December 2018). "You've seen the ads. But what's the deal with Shen Yun?". Houston Chronicle. Archived from the original on 7 January 2019. Retrieved 7 January 2019.
- ^ Tillotson, Kristin (6 February 2015). "Shen Yun: Politics behind the performance". Star Tribune. Archived from the original on 7 January 2019. Retrieved 7 January 2019.
- ^ a b Díez, Pablo (30 January 2023). "Shen Yun, la danza que los chinos no pueden ver, llega a España". ABC. Archived from the original on 30 January 2023. Retrieved 17 June 2023.
- ^ Needham, Emily (1 February 2023). "Perspective | Shen Yun has a political message. That shouldn't be a surprise". The Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Archived from the original on 2 April 2023. Retrieved 9 December 2023.
- ^ Hong, Nicole; Rothfeld, Michael (16 August 2024). "Behind the Pageantry of Shen Yun, Untreated Injuries and Emotional Abuse". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 21 August 2024.
- ^ Hamilton, Clive; Ohlberg, Mareike (2021). Hidden Hand: Exposing How the Chinese Communist Party is Reshaping the World. Canada: Optimum Publishing International. ISBN 9780888903082. Retrieved 11 May 2023.
- ^ "Moldova". U.S. Department of State. Retrieved 13 July 2020.
- ^ "Romania". U.S. Department of State. Retrieved 13 July 2020.
- ^ Zeitung, Berliner (12 February 2014). "Zensur: Chinesische Botschaft wollte Tanztheater verhindern". Berliner Zeitung (in German). Retrieved 29 September 2020.
- ^ Cook, Sarah (9 May 2016). "The Long Arm of Chinese Censorship Reaches South Korea". Freedom House. Retrieved 12 June 2024.
- ^ "Selling China by the Sleeve Dance". Hazlitt. 2 October 2017. Retrieved 29 September 2020.
- ^ "In Shen Yun, colorful past meets dark oppression". Times Union. 21 January 2011. Retrieved 29 September 2020.
- ^ "Dance troupe cancels Falun Gong shows". South China Morning Post. 26 January 2020. Archived from the original on 29 September 2020. Retrieved 29 September 2020.
Further reading
- Chan, Lik Sam (2016). "Emotional duplex in the nation (de-)branding: a case study of China and Shen Yun Performing Arts". Critical Studies in Media Communication. 33 (2): 139–153. doi:10.1080/15295036.2015.1129547. S2CID 146994119.
- The traditional Chinese dance troupe China doesn't want you to see, Nicholas Hune-Brown, theguardian.com, 12 December 2017
External links
Media related to Shen Yun Performing Arts at Wikimedia Commons
- Official website
- "Shen Yun Internal Revenue Service filings". ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer.