Bringing ancient war drama to the modern military

By Peter Marks

Civilians and military people will converge on Woolly Mammoth Theatre next Tuesday night, Sept. 28, to experience war the way Sophocles did. New York-based Theater of War Productions, which has been bringing two ancient Greek plays, "Ajax" and "Philoctetes," to U.S. military bases in this country and Europe, is expanding its reach. Now, as part of a new initiative, civilian theatergoers can see the plays alongside soldiers in regional theaters across the country.

The first venue is Washington's Woolly Mammoth, at 641 D St. NW. The idea in having actors read the plays is to foster discussion and understanding of the emotional issues that soldiers face. According to Woolly, nearly 20,000 service members and their families have attended on military bases. Woolly's sold-out one-night-only performance of the "Theater of War" program will be followed by a town hall talk featuring representatives of such organizations as the National Naval Medical Center and Wounded Warriors.