Every time Shen Yun Performing Arts dancer Marilyn Yang takes to the stage, she feels a sense of responsibility. On Sept. 4 in New York where she performed solo for the NTD International Classical Chinese Dance semifinals, it was the same. “As an artist you have a responsibility for what you’re expressing,” she said. “There’s an audience here today, and they’re here to learn about this lost art form.” In addition to classical Chinese dance, Shen Yun has pioneered the use of “shen dai shou,” an ancient philosophy of movement, by incorporating it into its dance fundamentals and pedagogy. This method was a new requirement the judges were looking for in the classical Chinese dance competition this year, which ironically must take place outside of China, because this traditional culture can no longer be found in China under communist rule. “All of our training is to bring awareness to this …