Shen Yun warning

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I mean the Shen Yun DC web site clearly describes itself as “China before communism” and as a “Heavenly gift” and that ancient China was “divinely inspired” and has a “rich spiritual heritage.”

“Cult” is OP’s characterization. But OP is pretty clearly a racist and hate-filled anti-theist.

BTW, religion and culture go hand-in-glove.

Not sure why you think it’s necessary for the KC to label it a “cult” when its religious themes are transparently emphasized on the organization’s web site.

Shen Yun is advertised as a representation of thousands of years of Chinese culture, not fundamentalist religious propaganda. I have no interest in supporting a fundamentalist religious organization. I didn't use the name "cult" because I noticed how easy you get triggered.

This.

This program is how Evangelical Christianity destroys indigenous cultures around the world.

They divorce ‘cultures’ from indigenous practices and beliefs that created, nurtured, preserved, and passed on these traditions for 1000s of years. Essentially, removing the thread that bonded it all together.

Falun Gong is not a Christian sect.

The American right-wingers took care to infuse some anti-science message in their Chinese spirituality.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I saw it a few years ago...my family was taken by my mother-in-law. She liked treating us to shows. We were all excited - I had seen the TV ads and thought it looked fun. Hadn't googled.

All the cult stuff aside:

1. Crap production values. The dancing is not that good, and the costumes are CHEESY. The big thing was disappearing dancers - there was a short wall in the back and they were able to go over the wall and disappear...supposed to be magical. Again, cheesy.
2. Rampant homophobia! There was booing. We booed.
3. Unintentional hilarity. At one point there was a giant picture of Karl Marx being threatening. Then there was a giant wave taking him down. We were ROTFL. It was unbelievable!

What do you think of Karl Marx?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I saw it a few years ago...my family was taken by my mother-in-law. She liked treating us to shows. We were all excited - I had seen the TV ads and thought it looked fun. Hadn't googled.

All the cult stuff aside:

1. Crap production values. The dancing is not that good, and the costumes are CHEESY. The big thing was disappearing dancers - there was a short wall in the back and they were able to go over the wall and disappear...supposed to be magical. Again, cheesy.
2. Rampant homophobia! There was booing. We booed.
3. Unintentional hilarity. At one point there was a giant picture of Karl Marx being threatening. Then there was a giant wave taking him down. We were ROTFL. It was unbelievable!

What do you think of Karl Marx?

I feel like you want everyone to lay down on the couch and open up to you. Unlike a real psychologist, you are only interested in whether you can close the discussion by yelling "Communist", "Ignorant", "Anti-religion", "Against free speech"
You don't have to be a communist to believe that the Karl Marx scene was unintentionally hilarious.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I saw it a few years ago...my family was taken by my mother-in-law. She liked treating us to shows. We were all excited - I had seen the TV ads and thought it looked fun. Hadn't googled.

All the cult stuff aside:

1. Crap production values. The dancing is not that good, and the costumes are CHEESY. The big thing was disappearing dancers - there was a short wall in the back and they were able to go over the wall and disappear...supposed to be magical. Again, cheesy.
2. Rampant homophobia! There was booing. We booed.
3. Unintentional hilarity. At one point there was a giant picture of Karl Marx being threatening. Then there was a giant wave taking him down. We were ROTFL. It was unbelievable!

I did not notice homophobia in this year's performance. I am not saying that it was absent, but I can't point to anything that I remember and say it was homophobic.
I booed the tenor (Gu Yun) who spewed "Behind atheism and evolution, Satan lurks." My wife gave me a look suggesting that it was not the best idea, even though she was also offended by his line. I ended up not booing the soprano (Haolan Geng), even though I felt she deserved some booing as well.

[Anonymous]

Karl Marx poster here. The giant video head of Karl Marx looking scary being washed away by a wave was straight out of Monty Python’s flying circus. Similar production values. By this point we realized it was crazy cult $hit.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Karl Marx poster here. The giant video head of Karl Marx looking scary being washed away by a wave was straight out of Monty Python’s flying circus. Similar production values. By this point we realized it was crazy cult $hit.

You should have said something about how much you admire Karl Marx to see if the psychologist starts screaming "Communist" and claims victory.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So you don’t think the Kennedy Center should allow performances with a religious theme or you think that all shows that have a religious element should have a warning like - Atheists beware. Religious discussion contained in performance.

I never thought that I will ever hear on a Kennedy Center stage that atheism and evolution are devil's deceit. I have nothing against religious shows as long as they are advertised as such. I don't want to pay them to sit in the audience as they tell me that I am the tool of the devil.

Maybe you need to put more critical thinking into why that bothers you. If you’re an atheist the devil doesn’t exist and neither does God. Why are you bothered to be called something that doesn’t exist to you?

When religious people associate you with the Devil, they don't really mean something good. This association is clearly meant as an insult rather than a friendly association. Should the atheists feel warm inside just because they don't believe in Devil? This line of argument is absolutely ridiculous. Just as ridiculous as a religious person preaching about critical thinking.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Wow. I had no idea that it was religious crap. And I was recently thinking we should try to go.

Thanks for sharing, OP.

I bought tickets but never went because of Covid. Thinking of asking for my money back.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I mean the Shen Yun DC web site clearly describes itself as “China before communism” and as a “Heavenly gift” and that ancient China was “divinely inspired” and has a “rich spiritual heritage.”

“Cult” is OP’s characterization. But OP is pretty clearly a racist and hate-filled anti-theist.

BTW, religion and culture go hand-in-glove.

Not sure why you think it’s necessary for the KC to label it a “cult” when its religious themes are transparently emphasized on the organization’s web site.

Shen Yun is advertised as a representation of thousands of years of Chinese culture, not fundamentalist religious propaganda. I have no interest in supporting a fundamentalist religious organization. I didn't use the name "cult" because I noticed how easy you get triggered.

This.

This program is how Evangelical Christianity destroys indigenous cultures around the world.

They divorce ‘cultures’ from indigenous practices and beliefs that created, nurtured, preserved, and passed on these traditions for 1000s of years. Essentially, removing the thread that bonded it all together.

Falun Gong is not a Christian sect.

The American right-wingers took care to infuse some anti-science message in their Chinese spirituality.

Right. That makes perfect sense.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why does the KC let these crazies use their theater?

https://www.newyorker.com/culture/culture-desk/stepping-into-the-uncanny-unsettling-world-of-shen-yun/amp

They paid to rent the space? Is there a problem with religious organizations renting performance venues?

There is a problem with a fundamentalist religious organization misrepresenting religious propaganda as a cultural experience. KC should properly advertise the show as a cult spewing science denialism.

I believe that's your view of the organization. Why don't you apply to work at the Kennedy Center?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I mean the Shen Yun DC web site clearly describes itself as “China before communism” and as a “Heavenly gift” and that ancient China was “divinely inspired” and has a “rich spiritual heritage.”

“Cult” is OP’s characterization. But OP is pretty clearly a racist and hate-filled anti-theist.

BTW, religion and culture go hand-in-glove.

Not sure why you think it’s necessary for the KC to label it a “cult” when its religious themes are transparently emphasized on the organization’s web site.

Why do you think the Kennedy Center needs to hide the religious background to get people to watch this show? You don't think they'd go if they had all of the facts?

Why do you think think the KC is “hiding” anything? I found the description to be accurate. You sound like a right wing conservative complaining that some media outlet isn’t covering some story they think is important.

They are hiding the religious aspects of the performance:
"Shen Yun’s unique artistic vision expands theatrical experience into a multi-dimensional, inspiring journey through one of humanity’s greatest treasures—the five millennia of traditional Chinese culture.

This epic production immerses you in stories reaching back to the most distant past. You’ll explore realms even beyond our visible world. Featuring one of the world’s oldest art forms— classical Chinese dance—along with patented scenographic effects and all-original orchestral works, Shen Yun opens a portal to a civilization of enchanting beauty and enlightening wisdom.

Traditional Chinese culture—with its profoundly optimistic worldview and deep spiritual roots— was displaced by communism in China. Today, only the New York–based Shen Yun is keeping this precious heritage alive on stage. And it’s an experience that will take your breath away."

Why are you afraid of the KC being transparent?

That sounds like an accurate description to me.

The Kennedy Center hosts cultural performances by American Indian tribes too. Many are spiritual in nature. Will you also demand trigger warnings?

Why are atheists such fragile little snowflakes who lack conviction in their value systems?

I would not say that I lack conviction in my value system. My concern is that you religious people learned that it is ok to believe in something with no evidence whatsoever. That affects not only me, but the whole country (see how many Republicans believe that the election was stolen). So why would I support a fundamentalist religious group?

You keep using that phrase. Which is really rather ethnocentric -- "fundamentalist" in an anglicized context is quite the loaded term that paints quite the negative caricature of intolerant, judgmental Bible thumpers who speak in tongues, handle snakes, hate gays, and so on and so forth.

So perhaps you can explain in a little more detail how you are getting "fundamentalist religious group" from a few slogans that atheism is bad? Because I'm not seeing it.

They may not be your cup of tea, but they don't exactly hide their spiritual leanings and so far as I know don't behave in any insidious ways other than, evidently, making comments in performances that make you uncomfortable because you don't share their beliefs.

In other words, your overreaction here kind of disgusting.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Why does the KC let these crazies use their theater?

https://www.newyorker.com/culture/culture-desk/stepping-into-the-uncanny-unsettling-world-of-shen-yun/amp

"The Chinese Embassy, for its part, warns the American public to “stay away from the so-called ‘Shenyun’ performance of the ‘Falun Gong’ organization so as to avoid being deceived and used by the cult.” Whether Falun Dafa—the name is used interchangeably with Falun Gong—is a cult, in either a strict or loose sense, is debatable. Its practitioners have no record of violence, and the organization does not appear to be coercive. Its stated central values are “truthfulness, compassion, and forbearance.” The organization’s Web site notes that the “Falun,” meaning an “intelligent, rotating entity composed of high-energy matter,” is planted “in a practitioner’s lower abdomen from other dimensions” and then “rotates constantly, twenty-four hours a day.” Most of the group’s practices fall roughly within the traditions of Tai Chi and Qigong, and the group itself can be situated within China’s long history of apocalyptic sects promising redemptive transformation, such as the White Lotus Society, which dates to the Ming dynasty."

They may be "crazy" but they aren't a "cult." What actual HARM is there here?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why does the KC let these crazies use their theater?

https://www.newyorker.com/culture/culture-desk/stepping-into-the-uncanny-unsettling-world-of-shen-yun/amp

They paid to rent the space? Is there a problem with religious organizations renting performance venues?

It is when the venue isn't transparent about the performance.

Why are you afraid of the KC being transparent?

What is actually wrong with you? Do you have brain damage or something?

[Anonymous]

Ugh, our kids would beg to go see the show every time one of those postcards came in the mail or we saw an add.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why does the KC let these crazies use their theater?

https://www.newyorker.com/culture/culture-desk/stepping-into-the-uncanny-unsettling-world-of-shen-yun/amp

"The Chinese Embassy, for its part, warns the American public to “stay away from the so-called ‘Shenyun’ performance of the ‘Falun Gong’ organization so as to avoid being deceived and used by the cult.” Whether Falun Dafa—the name is used interchangeably with Falun Gong—is a cult, in either a strict or loose sense, is debatable. Its practitioners have no record of violence, and the organization does not appear to be coercive. Its stated central values are “truthfulness, compassion, and forbearance.” The organization’s Web site notes that the “Falun,” meaning an “intelligent, rotating entity composed of high-energy matter,” is planted “in a practitioner’s lower abdomen from other dimensions” and then “rotates constantly, twenty-four hours a day.” Most of the group’s practices fall roughly within the traditions of Tai Chi and Qigong, and the group itself can be situated within China’s long history of apocalyptic sects promising redemptive transformation, such as the White Lotus Society, which dates to the Ming dynasty."

They may be "crazy" but they aren't a "cult." What actual HARM is there here?

LOL! If you don't think they are a cult and that they don't cause any harm, at least read this: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-07-21/inside-falun-gong-master-li-hongzhi-the-mountain-dragon-springs/12442518