Shen Yun Is Once-in-a-Lifetime Experience: Lazarus House President

Shen Yun started its 25 performances at the Merriam Theater in Philadelphia, from Feb. 8. to March 3. A congratulatory letter from the Mayor of Philadelphia was presented by the chief culture officer, Kelly Lee, to Shen Yun organizers, welcoming the arrival of Shen Yun to the city for its 12th year. The performance this year has once again impressed the audiences. "It’s beautiful, it’s amazing how...the talent of the dancers, they’re so in sync with their movements and they're just so very talented it's amazing," said John Longino, CFO of JP Orleans. "I was really moved," said Frank Stone. "It was very moving, it was very inspirational, it was very emotional and the music really helped to tell the story." Stone, the president of Lazarus House Ministries, Inc. and a musician, was amazed by the unique mix of Chinese and Western instruments in the Shen Yun Orchestra. "The orchestra was absolutely amazing, the attention to detail, the various sounds of the instrumentation were truly remarkable. The arrangements were overwhelming, they really were. As well as the performance itself was simply fantastic," he added. "There were very unique sound of the blend, and the harmonies were spectacular.  Just very original, very unique, very compelling." He also thinks the solos were outstanding. "They were just remarkable." Stone admires the perfect combination of the orchestra and the dance. "There’s such a wealth of talent between the orchestra and the performers," he added. For thousands of years, classical Chinese dance was used to express traditional values like reverence for the heavens, emphasizing virtue, and the belief that good is rewarded and the evil is punished. "It was a lovely performance, the dancers were very, very talented. The musicians are fabulous, it was lovely," said Kay McLane. Kay McLane, an interior designer and a writer, was deeply impressed by the spiritual connotation of Shen Yun and believes Shen Yun is presenting traditional values in contemporary life, which inspires people and give them hope. "Energetically it resonates with who I am. So I love the whole articulation of dance and song and music combined with history and who we are as human beings walking on this earth," she said. "They did a really good job of having modern situations like a man pretending to be handicapped, and [he is actually] not and then finding the way out, because people were helping him. I think the combination of the history married with present day was very well done." "I definitely believe that we all have a higher power. It sounds different depending on who we are, but I believe in a higher power," she added. Finally, Stone added that everyone should experience Shen Yun themselves, "My friends, I should say come see this it's a once in a lifetime experience. It is a remarkable show." NTD News, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania