A bomb threat targeting Shen Yun Performing Arts at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts caused an evacuation and road closures on Thursday morning, hours before the group’s opening night performance in Washington.
D.C. police responded to the scene at about 10:45 a.m. An email received by the theater 15 minutes earlier claimed that a bomb had been placed at the facility, and that it would be detonated if Shen Yun’s performance proceeded.
A spokesperson from the U.S. Park Police confirmed the agency had sent officers to the Kennedy Center but declined to offer further details. The spokesperson said the officers were no longer at the theater and directed questions to the Kennedy Center.
The Kennedy Center did not respond to queries from The Epoch Times by publication time.
The incident marks the latest among dozens of similar threats globally directed at Shen Yun, an arts group based in New York state that uses classical Chinese dance and music to showcase China’s ancient civilization before the communist takeover.
The Thursday performance, the first of a 12-show run, proceeded as scheduled at 7:30 p.m.
