Shen Yun Returns to Kennedy Center, Receiving Proclamations From US Officials

Published: December 30, 2025

Shen Yun performers assemble for curtain call at the Kennedy Center Opera House in Washington D.C. on Jan. 7, 2026. (Image: Lisa Fan/Vision Times)

By Cao Ming, Vision Times

The world-renowned Shen Yun Performing Arts has launched its 2026 global tour across Europe, the Americas, and Asia in December and will return to Washington, D.C.’s prestigious Kennedy Center Opera House from Jan. 7-18 for a total of 10 performances. Washington, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser sent a congratulatory letter marking Shen Yun’s 20th anniversary.

In addition, Maryland Governor Wes Moore, U.S. Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton, and U.S. Congressman James Walkinshaw also issued citations congratulating the performing arts troupe on its artistic achievements and its two decades of preserving and presenting traditional Chinese culture through immersive performing arts.

Founded in New York in 2006, Shen Yun celebrates two decades this year. According to the company’s website, Shen Yun has grown from one ensemble to eight, bringing together more than 500 top artists worldwide and presenting entirely new productions each season for audiences across the globe.

A beacon of culture, beauty, and hope

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In her letter, Mayor Bowser wrote: “Since its founding in 2006, Shen Yun artists have performed in 36 countries and more than 200 cities, and before millions of people across the globe.”

(Image: Washington, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser’s issued a letter congratulating Shen Yun Performing Arts on its 20th anniversary)

She continued: “Using the power of classical, ethnic and folk, and story-based Chinese dance and music, Shen Yun has illuminated the magnificence of Chinese culture, sparking collective awe and hope among residents of the District of Columbia and beyond.”

Mayor Bowser also expressed special appreciation for Shen Yun’s mission: “I am especially grateful for your work to uplift themes such as kindness, tolerance, loyalty, and family, inspiring empathy and mutual respect across cultural boundaries.”

Concluding her message, the mayor, on behalf of her constituents, thanked Shen Yun for its outstanding achievements and wished the company a successful and memorable opening performance in the nation’s capital.

‘High integrity and ability’

Maryland Governor Wes Moore issued an official citation recognizing the 20-year milestone of Shen Yun Performing Arts. “Because of your demonstration of high integrity and ability, meriting our great trust and respect, we are most pleased to award you the Governor’s Citation in appreciation of your outstanding services to the citizens of this State,” the proclamation read.

The letter also conveyed gratitude from Governor Moore, along with Aruna Miller, Maryland’s lieutenant governor, and Susan C. Lee, the state’s secretary of state, commending the company for its cultural contributions and dedication to artistic excellence.

‘A global sensation’

Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton, who represents Washington, D.C., sent a congratulatory letter to Shen Yun and welcomed the company’s performances at the Kennedy Center. “The District of Columbia is proud to host Shen Yun, a premier classical Chinese dance and music company based in the United States.”

She added, “Shen Yun has become a global sensation, reviving the true traditional culture of China and sharing it with world audiences.”

Congressman James R. Walkinshaw of Virginia’s 11th District also issued a letter congratulating Shen Yun on another “global tour, where art will once again be shared with audiences around the world.”

(Image: via James R. Walkinsaw/Composite by Vision Times)

A cultural highlight at Kennedy Center

Each year, Shen Yun’s performances at the Kennedy Center Opera House attract thousands of mainstream audience members, including representatives from U.S. government agencies, Congress, think tanks, foreign diplomatic missions, and the arts community. The White House box is frequently filled. Many viewers describe becoming devoted Shen Yun fans after being deeply moved by the artists’ technical excellence and the performances’ purity and beauty.

Though the Kennedy Center is widely regarded as one of the world’s most prestigious, and discerning, national arts venues, Shen Yun’s performances are often credited with setting a new artistic benchmark there. The elegant depth of classical Chinese dance, the fusion of Eastern and Western instruments, distinctive costumes, and immersive digital backdrops together revive the grandeur of 5,000 years of divinely inspired Chinese culture, offering audiences a glimpse of “China before communism.”

“Shen Yun is like winter jasmine blooming along the Potomac River,” said one audience member, adding, “It leaves a fragrance that lingers long after the curtain falls.”

Washington, D.C. Performance Schedule (2026) Dates & Times: