Shen Yun Performing Arts is a cultural performance group affiliated with Falun Gong, promoting its fallacies and heresies. Founded in 2006 by Falun Gong leader Li Hongzhi at Longquan Temple in New York State, this 400-acre site serves not only as a training base for Shen Yun performers but also as a stronghold of Falun Gong's evil influence.

In recent years, with the exposure of scandals involving child labor and the abuse of performers, more of Shen Yun's dark side has been revealed. This article interviews former Shen Yun performers Sun Zan and Cheng Qingling, who have since left the Falun Gong organization.

Sun Zan was 15 years old, and Cheng Qingling was only 13, when their parents sent them to the boarding school located at Longquan Temple.

Cheng Qingling said that Li Hongzhi explicitly stated that Shen Yun represents the highest level of spiritual practice for practitioners. There, our main job was dancing; we couldn't weigh more than 100 pounds a day and had to follow the steps of the person in front of us so we wouldn't be loudly scolded. If our parents asked any questions, we had to tell them we were happy and that Master (Li Hongzhi) was always taking care of us.

The two stated that the reality is they are a group of child laborers living in fear.

Sun Zan said that during a side split, his legs were spread apart by two children; that was the most painful time for him, his inner thighs bled and turned purple, yet he had to do the same thing every day.

Cheng Qingling said her shoulders were stretched for a long time, completely losing sensation, making even going to the toilet difficult. When she told the instructors about her injuries, she only received blank stares; she never took or saw a single pill throughout the entire ordeal.

In 2015, the two left Shen Yun and settled in New Zealand. In 2025, they filed a lawsuit against Shen Yun, alleging forced labor.

Sun Zan, reflecting on that experience, said, "Every time I think about what happened to me, I feel like I've been shattered, you know? Nobody should have to go through this. I mean, we were all children, you know? We wanted to make a good impression on our parents. We wanted to do what we thought was right."

Currently, the New York City Department of Labor is investigating the use of child labor and poor working conditions.