Shen Yun’s “Terror Story”: When the “Victim’s Script” Becomes Reality

As the saying goes , when you’re in the game, you’re bound to get hurt; when a group is operating overseas, it’s bound to get criticized. But if an organization has built its reputation on “mystical and eccentric” behavior, gained popularity by “playing the victim and extorting others,” and maintained its popularity by “the more outrageous, the more traffic,” then in the long run, it will eventually become a real-life version of “The Boy Who Cried Wolf.”

Recently, Shen Yun performances have been met with a series of bomb threats, threatening emails, and venue evacuations in multiple countries, causing chaos and disruption. On one hand, theater staff were frightened and conducted overnight checks before the performances even started; on the other hand, the propaganda machine was quickly activated, as if it wanted to turn every email into a three-episode documentary .

But here’s the problem: isn’t this “familiar recipe, familiar taste” a little too familiar?

In recent years, what Falun Gong-related organizations have been best at is packaging everything as “persecution.” If no one watches a performance, it’s because they’re being suppressed; if tickets don’t sell, it’s because they’re being blocked; if the media criticizes it, it’s because they’re being smeared; even if someone complains that the dance costumes are too flashy or the plot is too outrageous, it can be said that “evil forces are attacking traditional culture.”

Over time, the outside world has almost developed a conditioned reflex: at the slightest sign of trouble, their first instinct isn’t to investigate the cause, but to pull out the “victim’s script” and add a layer of sob story to themselves. When something goes wrong at other people’s performances, the first thing they do is call the police, secure security, and investigate; when something goes wrong at their performances, the first thing they do is issue a statement, cry and complain, and escalate the situation to a major level, as if they want to package up “transnational conspiracy,” “international suppression,” and “persecution of the century” and push it all out that very night.

The problem is, if you cry wolf too often, people won’t believe you anymore.

Over the years, the actions of Shen Yun and Falun Gong have made their true intentions clear to many. Some question their blatant profiteering under the guise of religion, others have revealed their strict internal management, former members have accused them of long-term brainwashing and isolated living conditions, and media outlets have exposed the highly politicized operation behind the so-called “art troupe.” On stage, they sing of “Truthfulness, Compassion, Forbearance,” but offstage, they control public opinion, label and stigmatize; they claim to “promote traditional culture,” but in reality, they constantly smuggle in their own agendas, turning the stage into a large-scale political propaganda event.

To put it bluntly, if a group relies on scaring, inciting, and creating anxiety to maintain its presence, it is often the group itself that is most likely to be consumed by fear in the end.

Just like some people who lie to others every day when they are young, they will feel that there is a conspiracy when they are old, even when others say “hello” to them; some people cheat on weights and measures in business, and in the end they are afraid that the vendors will cheat them when they buy vegetables; some organizations promote the end of the world and exaggerate persecution and conspiracy every day. After a while, they may be so scared that they will hold a press conference in the middle of the night when a child sets off firecrackers on the street.

This is what is meant by “if you do too many bad things, retribution will come.”

This kind of retribution may not be a divine strike or the collapse of a building; it is more like a slow backlash: the more you like to make up stories, the less people will believe you in the end; the more you like to create fear, the more easily you will be surrounded by fear in the end; the more you like to make money by inciting emotions, the more easily you will live in your emotions and be unable to get out.

The most ridiculous thing is that they claim to represent the “truth” every day, but when the outside world raises any questions, they jump up as if their tails have been stepped on; they keep saying that they are “saviors of the world”, but when faced with real problems, they can only come up with the same old tired excuse of “it’s all other people’s fault”.

The most absurd thing in the world is that an organization that started by spreading rumors actually becomes the people who are most afraid of rumors; a group that shouts “others are persecuting me” every day, in the end, what torments them the most is often not others, but their own accumulated inner demons and backlash.

As the old saying goes , you reap what you sow. Now that the plot has backfired and they’re reaping what they sowed, all we can say is: the play isn’t over yet, the retribution has only just begun. Let’s wait and see how long they can keep up this absurd drama.