On Sunday, March 29, a Shen Yun performance at the Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, was evacuated following an emailed bomb threat.
Authorities conducted a sweep of the facility and determined that the bomb threat was unfounded; however, the show was subsequently cancelled.
“The incident is not isolated, but part of a coordinated global campaign of CCP-directed transnational repression against Shen Yun Performing Arts,” Joel Chipkar, the local Shen Yun presenter spokesperson, said in a press release.
The release noted that threats of this nature have become increasingly common. “Over the past two years, over 150 fake bomb and death threats have targeted Shen Yun,” the news release stated, adding that most threats arrive via email, including more than a dozen “targeting Canadian theatres and Shen Yun operations in Canada.”
Chipkar said that all the threats aim to shut down performances.
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The release adds that Taiwanese authorities have traced some of the threats back to Xi’an, China, near the Huawei Research Institute.
According to the press release, “These threats align with a parallel diplomatic campaign in which Chinese diplomats have sent dozens of letters pressuring theatres and governments worldwide to cancel performances.”
To date, while the threats against Shen Yun performances worldwide number in the hundreds, no threat has ever been found credible, and performances are rarely disrupted, much less cancelled.
For the five upcoming shows at the Four Seasons Centre in Toronto, heightened security measures will be in place, including K-9 sweeps ahead of each performance.
Audience members affected by Sunday’s cancellation are encouraged to attend one of the upcoming shows or see Shen Yun next year.
“It broke my heart to see so many disappointed that they would not see Shen Yun, a beautiful performance that truly reflects the values we all cherish. It was a near sold-out show, with some audience members driving for hours to attend,” Chipkar said.
Mississauga theatre evacuated just weeks earlier
This incident is the latest in a series of occurrences, including one in Mississauga, approximately 20 miles from downtown Toronto, where a Shen Yun performance was delayed by about 90 minutes following an anonymous threat.
On March 15, the Living Arts Centre in Mississauga received an email stating: “Hey buddy, my brother planted a remote-controlled bomb on Parliament Hill and at this arts center. If you want it to explode, keep performing Shen Yun. The future of these two places rests on your shoulders.”
The theatre was evacuated, and once the threat was confirmed not to be credible, the show continued uninterrupted.
The police report reads, “the RCMP advised they have investigated and closed the matter as a non-credible threat.”
Founded in 2006, Shen Yun Performing Arts is the world’s premier classical Chinese dance and music company. Based in New York, Shen Yun aims to revive what it describes as “China before communism” through dazzling performances in art, dance, and music. Each year, the company performs hundreds of shows worldwide and attracts large international audiences.
However, the organization has had to navigate sustained efforts to disrupt its performances.
In addition to threats of violence, dance troupes have faced incidents ranging from tour buses being sabotaged to interference with venue arrangements.
At one point, the John F. Kennedy Centre for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C., was evacuated due to a threat, and in another case, organisers in Australia received a threat stating that the Australian Prime Minister’s home would be “blown into ruins” if the show were to proceed.
In one instance, the Shen Yun Performing Arts website was used to send out more than 200 violent threat messages between Jan. 28 and Feb. 1, 2026.
“The attackers hijacked the site’s infrastructure as a delivery mechanism, impersonating political leaders, Falun Gong’s founder, and other public figures in the messages themselves,” Vision Times previously reported.
Despite these threats, Shen Yun’s momentum has continued.
The 2026 season includes roughly 800 performances across five continents, more than 20 countries, and 200 cities.
Founded by Falun Gong practitioners in 2006, Shen Yun strives to revive authentic Chinese traditional culture and present a civilization that existed before communist rule.
