Every year about now, it’s Shen Yun time: Chinese dance troupe (as far as I can tell), that blankets the local media with non-stop promotions, months in advance. Commercials and billboards, of course; but also people standing on the street handing out fliers, and hanging things on my home doorknob.
So, who are these guys? (From a Cafe Society/arts perspective).
And second, more of a IMHO question: their omnipresence feels bit cultish. Kind of reminds me of the Moonies (did I just date myself?) If I see a performance will I wind up spending a weekend at their compound? (No, I’m not serious.)
They perform traditional Chinese dance and use Chinese performers, but they’re actually based in New York. As I understand it one of their goals is to spread a political message, and one of the main themes of their show is about how Chinese culture is being destroyed by the Communists. This is probably why they promote their shows so heavily.
It’s connected to Falun Gong, which is certainly accused of being a dangerous cult by the Chinese government. (how much of it is actually a cult and how much of it is that you end up having to act like a secretive cult when the Chinese government is persecuting you, I don’t know for sure)
And they are associated with a religion (Falun Gong), but as I understand it, the religious component of their message is more focused on “the Chinese government should stop oppressing us”, rather than "you should convert to our religion.
I don’t know how I missed this earlier thread; it answers all my questions. Thanks.
(Part of the mystery about them is that despite their omnipresence, i don’t think they’ve ever been reviewed in my local paper; and I don’t know anyone who’s seen them live.)
Apologies for reviving this nearly five-year-old thread but the New York Times ran an article yesterday (gift link) about how the young people who perform in the Shen Yun shows are mistreated, being told that their performance was a “spiritual mission.”
In pursuit of ever larger audiences, Shen Yun has treated many of its performers as an expendable commodity, a New York Times investigation has found. It has routinely discouraged them from seeking medical care when their bodies have broken down, and commanded their obedience to grueling rehearsal and tour schedules through relentless emotional abuse and manipulation.