Ancient Greek Tales of War Evoke Modern Catharses

Ancient Greek Tales of War Evoke Modern Catharses
By John J. Kruzel
American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, Jan. 15, 2010 – After 2,500 years of retirement, a former general has been hired as a military consultant to help troops cope with post-traumatic stress disorder.

Sophocles, an ancient Greek general and 5th century B.C. dramatist who penned tales of war and the lives of those affected by it, now speaks from the grave, as a modern interpretation of his works is read at military facilities and hospitals before audiences with ties to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

“Theater of War,” a brainchild of director Bryan Doerries that intends to bridge the past and present, represents what military officials describe as one of the more innovative public health efforts to amplify the dialogue about a psychological injury borne by an estimated 20 percent of troops returning from combat.

“I think the military naturally distrust film quite a bit, but I think theater is pure,” Doerries, the son of two psychologist parents, said this week in an interview at Walter Reed Army Medical Center here during a performance’s intermission. “I think there’s something about the felt emotion in the presence of others that changes your relationship to material like this, so that all of a sudden you’re not coming at it from your head. You’re coming at it from your heart.”

The two-part performance staged within an auditorium on the hospital grounds was minimalist fare: it featured only a long table with four microphones and chairs for the performers. Enter stage right, three graduates of the venerable Julliard School, and prominent actor Isiah Whitlock Jr., who is best known for his performance as Sen. Clay Davis on HBO’s gritty urban drama “The Wire.”

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Ancient Greek Tales of War Evoke Modern Catharses