What Makes Us Unique?
9 Characteristics
New to Shen Yun?
The world’s premier classical Chinese dance
company, Shen Yun is bringing to life a
lost culture through beautiful art.
company, Shen Yun is bringing to life a
lost culture through beautiful art.
What is Shen Yun, exactly? It’s more than just a performance—it’s a revival of the beauty and goodness of China before communism. With stories and legends, vibrant costumes and backdrops, original music and a few fun surprises—it’s an experience that will delight your senses, inspire your heart, and just leave you feeling great.
We’re based in New York and our artists come from all over the world. This performance means a lot to us and we put our all into it. We can’t wait to share it with you.
A few things about us you may not realize:
- Shen Yun is based in New York. We are not from China. We also can’t perform there. In fact, you can’t see a performance like this in China. ARTICLE
- We produce an all-new program every year
- Our stagecraft features patented technology ARTICLE
- We perform classical Chinese dance in its purest form EXPLORE
- Our orchestra is the first in the world to combine classical Chinese and western instruments as permanent members
- Many of Shen Yun’s artists escaped ongoing persecution in China. EXPLORE
Our Journey
How did we get to be the world’s premier
classical Chinese dance company?
classical Chinese dance company?
Shen Yun - Who We Are
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Humble Beginnings
In 2006, a small group of elite Chinese artists came together in New York with a mission—to revive traditional Chinese culture and share it with the world. They created Shen Yun. As their art form, they chose classical Chinese dance, which is so expressive it speaks a universal language. They established Fei Tian Academy of the Arts and Fei Tian College to train future generations, and brought onboard in-house choreographers and composers.
It is here, in the rolling hills of New York, that a renaissance of Chinese culture has begun.
Against All Odds
Many of Shen Yun’s artists escaped persecution in China at the hands of a totalitarian regime that is at war with past traditions, religion, and its own history. Among these artists are some of the world’s top classically trained dancers and award-winning musicians. What they have built with Shen Yun, critics are calling groundbreaking, exquisitely beautiful, and a display of excellence.
“Some people might wonder if the story we portray on stage is actually true. But what we depicted on stage is exactly what happened to me.”
— Shen Yun dancer Jiheng Zhao, about a dance telling of Falun Dafa practitioners in China today.
Challenges We Face
As we’ve gotten international attention, the Chinese Communist Party hasn’t sat by. In addition to trying to smear our reputation, their embassies and consulates have tried pressuring theaters around the world to cancel our shows, told VIPs not to attend, and tried stopping us in a variety of other ways. At the end of the day, what they do usually just amounts to free advertising.
More about CCP interference
Growth
Every year we now premiere a brand-new production and perform it in front of millions around the globe. Shen Yun is at the top theaters worldwide, from New York’s Lincoln Center and Washington’s Kennedy Center to Burgtheatre Vienna and Tokyo Opera City. We also have the Shen Yun Symphony Orchestra that performs annually at Carnegie Hall and has its own tour, and we recently launched our new on-demand streaming platform, Shen Yun Zuo Pin, giving fans access to exclusive video content.
Today,
A Global Sensation
When audience members give their remarks leaving the performance, many find themselves searching for words to capture their experience. You can hear everything from an entire alphabet of superlatives to “it just defies description.” They say it's just something you have to see to believe.
- “A tantalizing and fascinating evening that made me want to stay and see more.”—OPERA ONLINE
- “Beautiful... A nimble mastery of traditional talents.”—CHICAGO TRIBUNE
- “An explosion of color and sound... Chinese culture in its fullest flower.”—CHARLOTTE OBSERVER
- “Entertainment of the highest order... An exemplary display of excellence.”—STAGE WHISPERS