Tennessee's State Senator Reginald Todd with Mrs. Todd and a friend. (Dai Bing/The Epoch Times)
(Clearwisdom.net) A state senator had a deep, philosophical reaction to the Divine Performing Arts (DPA) show.
The first Memphis show by DPA on February 8 drew many dignitaries, including mayors, senators, media professionals, and executives. Tennessee State Senator Reginald Tate is an architect and a designer, as well as an elected official. The creative side of his profession coupled with his civic engagement may explain his subtle response.
"I can see the struggle of a people. I can see, if you will, the same type of slavery that we experienced. I can also see the same type of plight that was overcome." One of the dances, "Dignity and Compassion," is set in a prison in China, where a Falun Dafa prisoner of conscience is cruelly tortured to the brink of death.
"I can see the joy and intellect and also that these people are still together in their plight. They didn't dissipate like most other nations or most other races do. This is a unified birth, if you will. It was hard to overcome but they did it, and they did it respectfully still amongst each other. I like that."
He thought that the show presented "culture from a different angle, especially when you haven't seen it. I like the movement. I like the message. It's quite different. It's kind of relative to some of the moves, and some of the structure or some of the messages that we send in our music."
He felt a sense of commonality with Chinese culture, that some of the feelings conveyed in the dance and music were universal. He said it piqued his intellect.
"Even though it's from a different culture, it's refreshing. It's very beautiful. I like it very much, I really do."
The senator said the show increased his respect for Chinese culture.
"I've never been able to grasp the language, but now I can feel the plight of what they've been through by their messages they are sending through this music. I can appreciate it. I can."
He liked the visual part of the performance--the colors, costumes, and backdrops. He said, "It represents something that we don't know on this side [of the ocean], and to see the way that it's presented, even through the colors, it says something about the people.
"It says something about the culture, and if you miss it, I wouldn't say it's shortsighted, but a lot of us can't read between the lines, but I think this is open enough for you to see exactly what's going on from the other side of the world."
http://www.theepochtimes.com/n2/content/view/11711/
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Category: Shen Yun Performing Arts
