SAN FRANCISCO—Shen Yun Performing Arts has a very important message. There is another side to the wonderful Chinese people that people need to know, John Mitchell said. Mr. Mitchell, an executive director of Arden Wood, had come to see Shen Yun at the War Memorial Opera House in San Francisco with his wife and daughter. His daughter, who is adopted, was born in China, and Mr. Mitchell felt it was important for her to learn about her heritage. “It must be said that … the history of the Chinese people is not represented by the communist government. I think the message of spirituality is very important, given the aggressive communist thought,” he said. Shen Yun, based in New York, presents China’s authentic culture through storytelling via classical Chinese dance, through music, and through folk and ethnic dances. The storytelling dances depict legends and myths as well as modern-day events—such as …