(Clearwisdom.net) WASHINGTON--Actor, author, and celebrated soldier Mr. Rudy Reyes attended the Shen Yun Performing Arts show at The Kennedy Center Opera House on January 20. "I thought it was magnificent," he declared at the cast reception following the performance. He attended with his long-time friend, Bolivian theater actress Karen Lisondra.

Mr. Reyes was particularly struck by the message he saw expressed throughout the show:

"It was the pervasive language, that with a thought and with compassionate action you can change your life now and in the hereafter. Also, that nonviolence can defeat tyranny. And the message here, also, is about inclusion not exclusivity--everybody's involved, anyone can make the choice ... anyone can make a choice for the better."

Mr. Reyes is an ex-Recon Marine, whose three tours of duty included Afghanistan's operation "Enduring Freedom," and Iraq's "Iraqi Freedom." After leaving the Marine Corps, he played himself in the HBO drama Generation Kill, which portrayed Marines of the First Recon Battalion during the first 40 days of the US invasion of Iraq. Mr. Reyes is an inspirational writer and author of Hero Living. He is currently filming a new History Channel survival series in which he stars as Apocalypse Man.

Mr. Rudy Reyes and Ms. Karen Lisondra at the Shen Yun post-show cast reception at The Kennedy Center for Performing Arts in Washington on January 20.

The Shen Yun performance caused Mr. Reyes to reflect on his own experiences in wartime:

"I fought a long time in the Middle East ... and I saw those people [who were] abusing others. I was actually most compassionate for the abusers ... because they're just the henchmen. They're more afraid than the man being beaten [in the performance]. The man being beaten has his faith. So, this is what I was thinking when I saw the program," he said. He was referring to the Shen Yun dance "Astounding Conviction," which, according to the program book, portrays the arrest of a lone man in Tiananmen Square peacefully expressing his belief in Falun Gong, a spiritual practice persecuted by the Chinese communist government.

Mr. Reyes saw the Shen Yun performance as being "about marrying art, music, and the real heart-felt faces of the performers with a human agenda--to make China and also make other parts of the world better for us now and also for our children later."

"Please continue to do this kind of work. To get the message out," he advised.

What would Mr. Reyes tell others about the Shen Yun performance?

"Please go, because you'll be surprised. What a powerful message can be conveyed with compassion, love, and a wonderful show!"

Source:

http://theepochtimes.com/n2/content/view/28424/