Dance Against the Machine: Killing in the Name of… Revolution, Chinese Communist Party Targeted its Own Culture
A recent article in The Federalist, “How Shen Yun Artists Triumph Over Communist Chinese Oppression,” reveals a powerful story that sits at the intersection of truth and propaganda. Investigative journalist and documentary filmmaker Steve Lance knows all about this intersection; he exposes both. Behind the sold-out performances and stunning stage productions is a decades-long struggle against one of the most sophisticated authoritarian regimes on earth. Lance the filmmaker lays it all bare with personal stories.
CLICK HERE TO WATCH JOURNALISTIC MALPRACTICE AT NEW YORK TIMES
WATCH THE TRAILER FOR UNBROKEN HERE
- The untold story behind Shen Yun and why the Chinese Communist Party views a performing arts company as a threat.
- Filmmaker exposes Communist Fears of thousands of years of traditional Chinese culture that communist authorities sought to erase.
- The CCP’s efforts to suppress dissent and influence cultural institutions far beyond China’s borders.
- Why the battle over culture, faith, and historical memory is essential to understanding modern China.
- What Americans can learn from artists who have transformed cultural preservation into a peaceful act of resistance against authoritarianism.
While millions of Americans recognize Shen Yun from its nationwide advertising campaigns and annual theater tours, few realize that many of its performers are part of a movement dedicated to preserving the spiritual and cultural traditions that the Chinese Communist Party has spent decades attempting to eliminate. Through classical Chinese dance and music, Shen Yun presents a vision of China rooted in thousands of years of history rather than communist ideology, making it a frequent target of Beijing’s hostility.
Filmmaker Exposes China’s Darkest Fear
Available for interview is filmmaker Lance and longtime Shen Yun emcee and spokesperson, who can provide firsthand insight into why the Chinese Communist Party views a performing arts company as such a significant threat. He can discuss how Shen Yun’s artists have transformed cultural preservation into a form of peaceful resistance, bringing audiences face-to-face with traditions that survived centuries of upheaval but came under unprecedented attack during communist rule.
The story is especially relevant as Americans become increasingly concerned about China’s efforts to influence institutions, businesses, media organizations, and public discourse far beyond its borders. Discussions about Beijing often focus on trade, espionage, military expansion, or technology. The filmmaker highlights another critical dimension of the challenge: the CCP’s ongoing effort to control historical narratives, suppress religious belief, and shape how Chinese culture is presented to the world.
Drawing from the themes explored in The Federalist article, Lance the filmmaker can explain why preserving authentic Chinese culture has become a global issue, how Shen Yun’s performers continue to overcome intimidation and pressure campaigns, and why audiences around the world have embraced a message centered on faith, freedom, and human dignity.
For filmmaker Steve Lance’s audience, this is more than an arts story. It is an investigation into the clash between authoritarian control and cultural freedom, told through the experiences of artists who have dedicated their lives to ensuring that a rich civilization survives despite extraordinary efforts to erase it. As a filmmaker, Lance exposes it all.
Relevant Article(s):
How Shen Yun Artists Triumph Over CCP Oppression
FILMMAKERS – UNBROKEN: A Shen Yun Story
OPTIONAL Q&A:
- Steve, as a filmmaker, what does it say about the Chinese Communist Party that a performing arts company has become one of its most persistent targets outside China?
- How did Shen Yun evolve from a cultural revival project into what many see as a symbol of resistance against communist oppression?
- The Federalist article describes artists overcoming tremendous obstacles to preserve traditional Chinese culture. Why is Beijing so threatened by that mission?
- Many Americans know Shen Yun from its advertisements but not its backstory. What are they most surprised to learn about the performers themselves?
- How does the CCP attempt to influence or suppress organizations like Shen Yun beyond China’s borders, and what does that reveal about the regime’s global ambitions?
- Why is the struggle over culture and history just as important as the battles over trade, technology, and military power?
- What can Americans learn from Shen Yun artists who have witnessed or experienced the consequences of living under an authoritarian system?
- As tensions between the United States and China continue to grow, why is Shen Yun’s story particularly relevant right now?
ABOUT STEVE LANCE…
Steve Lance is Executive Producer of the film and a filmmaker. He focuses on investigative documentaries and cinematic storytelling rooted in real-world events. In UNBROKEN: The Untold Story of Shen Yun, Lance leads the film’s investigative narrative, examining threats, sabotage attempts, and the broader campaign targeting the performing arts company. Lance is also an investigative journalist and Vice President of NTD Television.
ABOUT LEVI BROWDE…
Browde serves as the Executive Director with the New York-based Falun Dafa Information Center – an organization dedicated to ending the human rights abuses against people who practice Falun Gong in China.
Over the past 20 years, Browde has been interviewed and quoted by the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, the Chicago Tribune, CNN, the Associated Press, TIME Magazine, BBC, AFP, and other media outlets. He has spoken about Falun Gong and human rights in China at briefings on Capitol Hill in Washington DC, at the United Nations human rights sessions in Geneva, Switzerland.
Browde studied East Asian Studies at Wesleyan University and is an avid supporter of traditional Chinese culture. He founded several software start-ups, and lives in New York with his wife and two sons.
ABOUT LEESHAI LEMISH…
Leeshai Lemish has been with Shen Yun since 2006. He earned his bachelor’s degree in Chinese history and language from Pomona College, California, and his master’s in international relations from the London School of Economics. He has spent extended periods studying, working, and conducting research throughout East Asia, and has authored articles on Chinese current affairs in both English and Chinese.
He joined Shen Yun Performing Arts as an MC when the company was founded in 2006 and has since emceed close to two thousand performances with the company, taking the stage with Shen Yun at prestigious theaters such as Lincoln Center and the Kennedy Center, the London Coliseum, Tokyo Opera City, and many others worldwide. In addition to his performance role, he has tracked and documented on his website over 100 cases of the Chinese Communist Party and its agents trying to sabotage Shen Yun internationally. He has testified on transnational repression in front of Congress, has been a featured guest on television and radio shows around the world, and is the host of the podcast Shen Yun Voices.
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