The Aquila Theatre has an applied theatre program called Our Warrior Chorus. They use ancient literature to build dialogue regarding the veteran experience, war and service. They create and share art that includes modern stories attached by the collective experience of classical works. The play, Our Trojan War, was a great theatrical experience.The play included epic scenes from Homer, Greek drama and literature together with captivating questions on modern democracy. Our Trojan War uses epic moments from Homer’s Iliad and scenes from other classical Greek drama and poetry to propel a thrilling chronicle of men and women at war.

This play was a bit confusing in the beginning of the play even though I did know the story of the Trojan War, but I did understand as the play continued. The play uses the setting of a home in Middle Eastern Village that was raided by American soldiers. The play draws parallels between the Greek classics and modern wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. The home had lots of books of great works of the ancient Greek and also Western world. They had those collections because of Islamic scholars; they translated them into Arabic. The characters then tell their stories and why they’re there and some were not even sure why they were.

One character’s story was told by the story of Odysseus-Circe myth. It was told by Circe’s point of view and they were revisioned as soldiers. The men and Odysseus couldn’t return home because they were too accustomed to being in war. Circe turned the men into swines so they’d forget their past (My favorite part of the play). This story is similar to one of the stories Shahrazad said in The Thousand and One Nights, called The Second Old Man’s Tale, in which an old man and his brothers go on a journey. The old gentleman was the most fortunate from his brothers. He had money, kindness, and a wife, which made the siblings envious. Thus, they decide to drown him, but his wife saves him. The loving partner, a she-demon, carries him out of the sea and then her sister makes his brothers into dogs as their punishment (NAWL B: 575). Both Circe and the she-demon had tremendous power.

What I enjoyed most about “Our Trojan War” was that it gave a visual of how veterans feel. This play allowed the audience who are not aware of issues that veterans face and the meaning of serving our country. This play helped me and the audience to support and honor the soliders. The actors were amazing and also it was a great experience being in the front row seats of a play!

Here is a picture of a scene from the play:

(Bowley, Graham. “Can Programs That Help the Military Save the Federal Arts Agencies?”The New York Times)