St. LOUIS— “I love the show. It was terrific!” said Mr. Steve Jennings. The retired Evansville University president caught the opening performance of Shen Yun Performing Arts Touring Company at the Fox Theatre on Tuesday, Jan. 25.

As a professional educator for four decades, Mr. Jennings was immediately drawn to the depth of Chinese culture as it was presented.

“It was just beautifully done and I loved the historical emphasis. It was there for all these dynasties; it was terrific.”

Shen Yun’s productions draw their inspiration from China’s 5,000 years of civilization. Values such as compassion and loyalty, kindness and bravery lie at the heart of traditional Chinese culture.

“We had read a little about it ahead of time, so it helped to put it in context. And it was just beautifully done and a wonderful performance.”

Shen Yun performs two kinds of dances: classical Chinese dance is best able to bring to life the richness and depth of an ancient culture, and that is used for story-based dances. Shen Yun also performs folk and ethnic dances. For millennia, the peoples of China from different regions have danced during festivals and celebrations to express their joy.

Mr. Jennings described the dancing as superb.

Audience members have been touched by the moving solo erhu performance, Can You Recall?

Mr. Jennings shared his appreciation, “The Chinese instruments, it was great to hear some that I never heard before. And so, I think we'll come back.”

“The costumes, the elaborate, gorgeous colors and costumes,” was another element that Mr. Jennings remarked on.

He said he definitely plans to recommend Shen Yun to his friends. “I will tell them to come tomorrow while it's still in St. Louis or come next year. I hope it comes back!”

Steven Jennings became the University of Evansville’s 22nd president after serving as president of three other educational institutions since 1983. As president Mr. Jennings oversaw UE's transformation to a top-tier institution of higher learning.

Reported by Kerry Huang and Jeanmarie Lunsford

New York-based Shen Yun Performing Arts has three touring companies that perform simultaneously around the world. For more information, visit ShenYunPerformingArts.org

The Epoch Times is a proud sponsor of Shen Yun Performing Arts. 

Original article: http://www.theepochtimes.com/n2/content/view/50051/