Theater of War 2023
THEATER OF WAR
Theater of War Productions and Four Freedoms Park Conservancy propose a special presentation of Theater of War in Four Freedoms Park on the morning of Wednesday September 27 for a curated audience of service members, veterans, cadets, military family members, and concerned citizens. The performance will also be broadcast on Zoom for a large, global audience.
Theater of War is a live, hybrid, public health project that presents acclaimed actors and veterans performing scenes from Sophocles’ Ajax—an ancient play about the suicide of a great, respected warrior—as a catalyst for guided discussions about suicide, combat stress, moral injury, alcohol and substance abuse, and the impact of deployment on individuals, families, and communities. Over the past fifteen years, Theater of War has been presented more than 500 times for U.S. military units all over the world, across all services and ranks, from infantry Marines to Special Forces to the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
Theater of War aims to:
- Raise awareness and vigilance about suicide;
- De-stigmatize combat stress, moral and psychological injury;
- Increase awareness about alcohol and substance abuse;
- Encourage service members and their families to seek help;
- Raise community awareness about the challenges faced by service members, veterans, and their families.
Chapter XIX was invited to attend the Theater of War play (Greek Tragedy), of Ajax, on 27 SEP 2023,
at the FRANKLIN D. ROOSEVELT FOUR FREEDOMS PARK CONSERVANCY.
THE PLAY
Ajax tells the story of a formidable Greek warrior who slips into a depression near the end of The Trojan War, after losing his best friend Achilles in combat. Feeling betrayed after being passed over for an award, Ajax attempts to murder his commanding officers, fails, and—ultimately— takes his own life. The play tells the story of the events leading up to Ajax’ suicide, as well as the story of his wife and troops’ attempt to intervene before it’s too late. Finally, the play depicts the devastating impact of Ajax’ suicide upon his family and fellow soldiers
THE DISCUSSION
Theater of War Productions has had a long track record of getting highly-resistant military audiences to open up and engage in dynamic, constructive discussions about suicide, mental health, and other challenging topics. The first presentation of Theater of War took place in San Diego in August 2008 for 400 Marines and their spouses. The audience discussion that night was scheduled to last thirty minutes, but ended up lasting several hours, during which Marines and their spouses stood up, quoted lines from the ancient play from memory, and shared their perspectives and stories. It was then that we knew we had discovered a very powerful ancient tool for helping warriors process their experiences and begin talking about the unique challenges of deployment and military service. During the discussion, a Theater of War master facilitator asks questions about the play, touching upon core themes—such as survivor’s guilt, loss, and betrayal—that speak to the warriors across time, drawing the audience into powerful dialogue. The main objective of Theater of War is to initiate these hard conversations and normalize them, generating a sense of connection and community, fostering awareness, leadership, compassion, and understanding.
