An Iliad
A play and writing workshop for Veterans
An Iliad is a project that brings veterans into dialogue about their own wartime experiences through the prism of a living, breathing epic war poem.
The play by Lisa Peterson and Denis O’Hare is based on Homer’s The Iliad, translated by Robert Fagles.
A one-woman play featuring Rosemary Brownlow-Calkin.
Location: Arizona Artists Guild | 18411 N 7th Ave, Phoenix, AZ 85023
Date: Friday, November 8, 2024
Time: 4:00 pm
Timeline:
- 4:00-5:15 | presentation of the Play
- 5:30 – 7:00 | Creative Writing Workshop for Veterans, and Active Military.
Made possible with support from:
Nevada Humanities, the NEA, Arizona Artists Guild, Sonoran Art League, Mesa Art League, WHAM and Mountain Artists Guild
Hosted by Arizona Art Alliance
Description:
We start with the play An Iliad, written in 2014 by Lisa Peterson and Dennis O’Hare, and produced by University of Nevada, Reno professors and Project Directors Rosemary Brownlow-Calkin, a professional actor, and Dr. Yasmine Jahanmir, a professional director and theatre historian. Attending veterans, active military and their family are invited to watch a private performance of the play, which investigates the human experience not only of the Trojan War, but also of every war in history. An Iliad embeds in its expansive reach all the familiar components of The Iliad itself, with plenty of text lifted directly from Robert Fagle’s translation and a view towards bringing Hector and Achilles to life as relatable, flawed humans who might exist today. After the play, veterans, scholars, the performer will engage in a talkback about the performance and the source material.
After a short break, project partner and military spouse Dr. Jacqueline Viskup, a community arts practitioner and theatre of war scholar, will lead an interactive workshop. Together we will dive into the play, asking and answering questions: what characters resonated with you the most? How might war have been experienced differently for a Trojan soldier than for a 21st century American? During the discussion, participants will also examine several short passages from The Iliad itself, analyzing the text, engaging with imagery, and drawing contemporary parallels.
Dr. Viskup will guide us through a step-by-step process of writing a monologue from the point of view of a Greek Or Trojan soldier. Dr. Viskup provides a prompt for every section of the text, which is framed as a letter home. The structure helps guide participants through the writing process but is loose enough to accommodate diverse choices. Writing as an ancient “character” gives the flexibility to speak entirely, partially, or purely metaphorically from one’s own experience. In each case, participants are modeling what they learned from watching An Iliad: using the safety and freedom of metaphor to make the real both more profound and more bearable. Finally, all are invited to share their completed monologues out loud.
Registration for this event is required. Click the link below to register.
About the Facilitators:
click for more information
click for more information
click for more information
