“And the War Came” performed at the Long Beach Armory with emotional narratives opening night, April 24.
The play, a tribute conceived and directed by Joanne Gordon, artistic director for the California Repertory Company and chair of the theatre arts department, and written by the company, portrayed the personal side of the military and war.
Mike Phu, a junior biochemistry major and theatre arts minor, liked how different viewpoints of the soldiers were portrayed in the play.
“I have friends [serving] in Iraq right now, so I can relate to [these] stories,” Phu said.
Phu said he prefers to see live shows because he believes films are too unrealistic while seeing the actors perform on stage is authentic. Although Phu enjoyed the play, he believes there are more R-rated details that could have been shared.
“I think this play kind of played it safe to be honest, but it is hard to tell,” Phu said.
National Guard Pfc. Angel Ortiz shared a similar feeling about the play.
“It was definitely powerful and moving, but I wish they would’ve touched on happy subjects too because there is a lot of good that comes with all of the bad,” Ortiz said.
Ortiz said he dealt with some of the issues depicted in the play in high school when his father was in Iraq. Coincidentally, Ortiz and his father are both in the National Guard and will be deployed to Iraq together in August 2010.
“I’m actually excited about it [because] at least I know there’s going to be one familiar face there,” Ortiz said. He believes he will more than likely be in the same unit as his father.
Phu said that veterans, students and children who have parents in the military should see the play because of the authentic portrayal of life for military families and their relatives in the military.
Brian Harrison, a dramatic writing graduate student, had a different experience that he hoped non-military audience members took from the play. According to Harrison, his plays, “Snap,” “All Quiet,” and “The Diary,” were written to create humility and respect in the audience.
“I know that following [President George W. Bush’s] administration a lot of people are anti-military and I hope that [the audience] walks away with a sense of what these men and women do,” Harrison said.
David Vegh, a graduate in the acting program, didn’t know what to expect from the audience because of the different emotions in the play. He said he believes each audience member will respond differently based on his or her personal experience or connection to the subject matter.
A great deal of research went into developing each play, according to Harrison. News articles, personal testimonies and blogs were used for the personal accounts and then dialogue was formed around them.
According to Vegh, some of the material for these plays came directly from interviews, which were inspiration for the play.
Vegh wrote “Nicole,” “The Tattoo Artist,” “9/11,” “Howling Commandos” and “Mays and Rice” for the ensemble.
“We knew last semester which actors would be in the play and the playwright class … was dedicated to writing [for] this project,” Vegh said.
Harrison believes that this play is relevant to the current U.S. involvement in Iraq, but that the play also brings a much-needed emotional element to the forefront.
“There is such a huge spectrum of our society that is involved in the [Iraq war] that I don’t think stories like [those in the play] can be ignored,” Harrison said.
His attitude did not always align with this.
“I was a torchbearer for the ideology [of anti-military] until I started writing this and met these men and women,” Harrison said. “[Meeting them] has changed my view entirely of what they do because I don’t have the balls to ever do what they do.” He said he believes that military service members go through “a lot of shit” and are not recognized for that anymore.
All of the playwrights for “And the War Came” hope that those whose lives were portrayed in the play will realize that they are not alone.
“When I was speaking with a lot of these people they talk as if they never told the story before because no one would listen to them,” Harrison said. “[The audience] might not hear the story perfectly or [they] might not interrupt it perfectly, but at least [they’re] trying to listen.”
Nancy Bell, a graduate in the acting program, shared the same sentiment as Harrison.
“I just hope that [these families] see that people care,” Bell said.
For this play, Bell wrote “Mothers and Fathers,” “Venus,” and “Virginia.” She interviewed and played a mother whose son is going back to Iraq next week.
“I was really nervous because I play [the mother] and I wrote several pieces for the [play] based on our interviews,” Bell said. She believes this performance meant so much to the mother because she was able to be understood and heard.
Vegh said it’s important to the actors that they tell these stories honestly and do them justice.
“If there was a story [I] was hoping to tell [with my playwrights] it was about the soldiers and their families and less of a political agenda,” Vegh said.
Bell said her familiarity with military issues and how military families deal with these issues were non-existent prior to her project.
“It’s very strange to me now to think back on how disconnected I was before this project,” Bell said. “I feel a little ashamed that I was completely, blissfully ignorant about it before.”
She stated this play tells the complete story of what happens to people in the military and when they go to war — the positive and the negative.
Performing the play at the National Guard Armory in Long Beach has personally affected the company, according to Vegh.
“Since we’ve been in [the armory] we’ve grown to have a relationship with [the service members], so obviously with this piece it affects [us] significantly,” Vegh said.
For Gordon, keeping in mind the military service members she has worked with for the past two years at the armory, was essential to the poignancy of these true life stories.
“Doing [this] play was very important to me because I grew up in South Africa where armed forces were people feared and loathed, but I have come to terms and appreciate [those] who service for [the United States],” Gordon said. “I don’t think there can be closure [for these families] but I do think there can be acknowledgement [where] people understand it and think.”
As part of the tribute to the National Guard, Cal Rep has partnered with Soldiers’ Angels to gather donations from the audience to support military service members and their families. Soldiers’ Angels provides care packages, letters, rehabilitation services and emergency supplies to aide deployed service members, wounded soldiers and military families.
“And the War Came” continues through May 9 with Tuesday through Thursday performances beginning at 7:30 p.m. and Friday and Saturday performances at 8:00 p.m. There will be no performances on May 1 and 2.
Tickets are $20 for general admission, and $17 for seniors and students with valid I.D. For more information visit www.calrep.org and for Soldier’s Angels visit www.soldiersangels.org.