By Jennifer Tseng
Photography by Larry Dye
When you envision an advocate for ancient Chinese traditions, what image comes to mind? Perhaps a martial artist rippling with muscles. Or maybe a slender and dignified scholar reciting poetry from a bamboo scroll. In either scenario, they would understand Chinese very well. That’s a given.
However, this couldn’t be further from the truth for Aaron Huynh when he started his career as a classical Chinese dancer. He’s the son of a Chinese mother and a Vietnamese father who both immigrated to Australia in their youth, and English is the go-to language in the family home. “My parents are very smart. They learned English when they came to Australia. They’re very fluent in English.“
Growing up in the West, Huynh gave little thought to his Asian background. He didn’t have a lot of connection to his heritage and had very little understanding of what it meant to be Chinese, he said. This all changed when Huynh embarked on a mission to retrace his roots and salvage an ancient culture teetering on the brink of extinction after communist’s rule.
To perform at his best, Hyunh believes it’s crucial to delve into traditional Chinese culture and thoroughly understand the backstory of the characters he portrays._Courtesy of Shen Yun Performing Arts
Answering a Call to Duty
In 2024, Huynh began his fifth year as a principal dancer for Shen Yun Performing Arts—the world’s premier classical Chinese dance and music company. It was created in 2006 by elite Chinese artists who escaped persecution in their homeland to start a new life in America where they would have artistic freedom. China was once revered as the Land of the Divine. For millennia, its people believed that by keeping their hearts pure and adhering to strict moral standards, they would be blessed by the divine. Holding tight to this belief, they prospered for 5,000 years. However, after the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) takeover in 1949 and its spread of atheism, these values were systematically erased.
Headquartered in New York, Shen Yun is dedicated to reviving China’s traditional culture and shedding light on the ongoing human rights violations in contemporary China.
Seeing Huynh standing tall and composed onstage, no one would have guessed the perseverance he mustered to get there. A decade ago, the thought of performing under the spotlight for thousands of people was not just unimaginable for him, but was absurd.
“When I first started dancing, I was very shy and introverted. I had a natural dislike for things that required me to be in front of people. … I would never want to go near bright lights or huge groups of people. … Going onstage was one of my deepest fears,” Huynh said.
Though performing took a lot of courage, Huynh was determined to see Shen Yun’s mission through. A practitioner of Falun Dafa (also known as Falun Gong), a peaceful spiritual discipline, he knew firsthand the crimes of China’s ruling regime.
Mongolian ethnic dances, with their vibrant energy and powerful movements, are always a delight for audiences. _Courtesy of Shen Yun Performing Arts
Driven by fear and jealousy of Falun Dafa’s immense popularity worldwide, in 1999, the CCP launched a violent persecution of its followers. Since then, millions of peaceful citizens have faced arrest, torture, and even death for upholding the traditional Chinese tenets of truthfulness, compassion, and tolerance—the core principles of Falun Dafa.
“When you see what Shen Yun is doing—providing a platform to expose people to traditional Chinese culture and show them what’s really happening in China—what reason do I have to not give it a try?” Huynh said of his decision to dance.
“While I have the comfort of an air-conditioned classroom and freedom of speech, people in China are facing an enormous amount of pressure and ceaseless persecution. Many of them are living in poverty, and they’ve lost their families. I have everything, so why shouldn’t I do my part in helping to spread the word?”
Reconnecting to His Heritage
For an Australian boy whose only connection to China is the color of his skin, he had to learn everything from scratch. Huynh soon realized the enormity of the task. Mastering the Chinese language was just the tip of the iceberg. Bridging the vast cultural differences between the East and West proved to be a formidable challenge.
Doing classical Chinese dance but not speaking Chinese is challenging, and he often gets trolled about it, he said. “To dance well, I have to know everything from Chinese history to culture. So, if my language skills are not up to par, it can be very difficult.”
Huynh explains the cultural differences by comparing painting styles: “Traditional Western artists focus on specific details,” he said. “They pay immense attention to the spatial perspective of the art, the shadows, the coloring, the light—they do everything to make it as realistic as possible.”
Huynh performing a switch leap in Classical Chinese dance, one of the world’s most challenging art forms.
Whereas in Chinese art, everything is about conveying an inner message and meaning. The focus is on the overall atmosphere of the painting and the emotions that it imbues. The picture is contemplated as a whole. That also reflects in how Chinese classical dance is presented.
Huynh said that when he first started dancing, if his teacher pointed out that the position of his palm wasn’t right, he would focus on that palm. That sidetracked him because he was used to thinking that he had to fix each part of his body, one by one. He wasn’t looking at the pose as a whole.
One day, everything clicked. “I realized, actually, that it’s not about the palm—that palm is connected to my arm and head,” he said. “It’s really about not overthinking every single movement, or else it doesn’t look natural; you disturb its natural flow.”
Blessing in Disguise
During the 9th NTD International Classical Chinese Dance Competition in 2021, Huynh won a silver medal for his depiction of a warring general mourning the death of his friend. Falling into an exhausted sleep, the general was encouraged by his friend’s spirit to let go of his grief and protect his country. Huynh wanted to showcase someone at his lowest point in life who is still able to pull himself up and fulfill his mission. Little did he know that he, too, would soon need that resilience.
Just as Shen Yun was getting ready to kick off its 2022 tour, Huynh injured and tore his anterior cruciate ligament (ACL)—connective tissues in the knee—and needed surgery. It took him seven months of recovery before he was able to return to the troupe.
The support that he wore kept his leg straight at all times. Lying in bed unable to even turn, Huynh felt like a baby again. “I had to relearn how to put my ankle down and how to control my knee so I wouldn’t fall. It was quite hard, and I felt useless because everyone else was dancing, and all I could do was lie around and do nothing,” he said.
A Slice of Humble Pie
As soon as Huynh regained a measure of mobility, he volunteered to help out backstage. That was a special period of time. That precious opportunity allowed him to step out of his role as a dancer and see Shen Yun from the perspective of an audience member.
“Sitting in the audience is exciting. It’s really rewarding when you see people genuinely laugh and enjoy the show, or quietly wipe away tears during a touching scene,” he said.
“Then, watching my fellow dancers looking so energetic onstage—even though I knew they were probably really tired and going through a lot of personal hardships—really widened my perspective. My focus is no longer just on dance, dance, dance, but rather, on how people feel about the world.”
Once shy and introverted, Huynh has blossomed into a charismatic principal dancer of Shen Yun Performing Arts.
During his time backstage, Huynh learned the value of humility as he experienced firsthand the endless tasks the behind-the-scenes crew handled to guarantee the success of each performance. “It was very humbling because I immediately saw that I wasn’t the only one having a hard time.” Everyone around me was also working hard, so I should take care of them and put their needs before my own.” We are all here striving toward the same goal, he added.
“To be honest, I really treasured whatever happened to me. I think it was a great thing because it allowed me to really look within and see what I did wrong. I realized that even though I try not to be selfish or pursue fame and recognition, when I don’t pay attention, I’ll still be affected by those things.”
Guided by Faith
As Huynh’s dance skills matured, his faith strengthened. He credits all his achievements to the teachings of his faith—Falun Dafa. Today, the spiritual practice continues to be the guiding force in his life and career.
“Truth, compassion, and forbearance—when I was really young, they were just a part of my life. They never were something I had to think about. Only after I came to Shen Yun, did I begin to seriously consider [these principles],” he said.
“They gave me a lot of hope and inspiration because everything that Falun Dafa teaches is guiding us to be a better person and to let go of our selfishness for the benefit of others. This is the huge thing that allows me to be committed, … no matter the hardships.”
Huynh’s journey is a testament that heritage is not merely a birthright, but is also a profound calling to understand, preserve, and share. As he continues to captivate audiences worldwide, his story serves as a reminder to take bold leaps of faith and embrace the challenges ahead. Ultimately, the most beautiful performances in life are those that come from the heart.
