By Mark Benedetti | Staff Writer
Ajax: A story of depression, post-traumatic stress, honor, and the trials and tribulations of a man, and his family, upon returning home after going to war. This classic story is just as applicable then as it is now, with over 118,000 cases of PTSD among deployed veterans between 2001 and 2014 (according to the US Surgeon General Army Office). The Pell Center Story in the Public Square Initiative, with support from the Rhode Island Council for the Humanities, is producing a production of Ajax, with the intention of provoking thoughts on this issue. At the end of each performance of the seven night show, there is a public discussion on military personnel returning from war and how it relates back to Ajax. The show is set to be performed at five different stages across Rhode Island 11 November – 20 November.
I attended the performance on the night of the 13th of November, at Salve Regina University’s Megley black box theater. The show opens, fittingly, with Black Sabbath’s “War Pigs,” incorporating common themes in Ancient Greek theater, such as drumming as the actors slam chairs down to disturb the audience, to enter the mind of Ajax. The noise and fast, orchestrated, movements cumulate into a deafening silence at the end. The unease releases into a sudden peace. Ajax’s battle after the war begins. The play starts.
The show is a modern adaption, in that the costumes are set in modern military fatigues and guns are used in place of swords. However, the battles take place in Troy and religion is centered on the likes of Athena and Zeus. In an unorthodox reader’s style format, the actors read James Scully’s 2012 translation of the script upon the stage. Tom Gleadow, the production’s director, did an excellent job in connecting the past to the present, revealing how timeless humanity is. At the end of the show, there was a public conversation on returning veterans. Veterans were encouraged to attend and speak up during this time to give understanding to civilians, which yielded good results. The Pell Center provided pamphlets on veteran’s groups and other ways for people to become involved.
I had the chance to sit down with Jake Fernandes, ’17, a Salve Regina student who performed as Menelaus, and the only non-professional actor in the cast. Fernandes felt a strong personal connection to the subject matter as multiple members of his family have served or are currently serving in the United States armed forces. It was “cool to be able to pay tribute in that way to [my family],” Fernandes remarked on performing in Ajax. He believed that it was good people are speaking out, as many service members return from overseas and feel “discarded” as Fernandes put it, and that we need to give the “support and respect” that they deserve. The public conversation was moving, as he remembers one army nurse who saw the performance. She said that the emotions felt on the stage were very similar to what she sees every day. Panic is common, while families of soldiers who committed suicide or attempted suicide come in demanding answers, to which she has none. The show certainly evoked this feeling. The conversation can sometimes be difficult to start up, as there’s a lot of taboo involved. Once a few people break the ice though, a lot of perspectives are learned and shared amongst the audience members.
Fernandes says it was a lot different than the Salve Regina University Department of Theater shows which he has been a part of, such as Antigone, The Fantasticks, and The Importance of Being Earnest. “At Salve we’re all learning, we’re all students,” so working with professionals gave him a different taste of acting. Some had day jobs and some did only acting. For him, he was excited to know this information as he was nervous about not being able to act post-college while still having a career in social work. His fellow cast members reassured him that this art form is still in his future.
Playing a dramatic antagonist was also very different for Fernandes, who usually uses a personal connection to a character’s personality in order to enter a role. However, Menelaus challenged Fernandes, as it was hard for him “to get into something you’re totally against,” referencing Menelaus’ disrespect towards Ajax’s mental illness after returning to war. From what this reporter saw however, Fernandes became Menelaus seamlessly, as the anger and contempt flowed out of him. Ajax, I would be so bold to say, is an important point in Fernandes’ acting career.
If you missed Ajax while it was at Salve Regina, you can still catch it at on the 16 November at the Contemporary Theater in South Kingstown, RI, the Smith Center for the Performing Arts in Providence on 17 November, the Sandywoods Center for the Performing Arts in Tiverton on 18 November, and the Blackstone River Theater in Cumberland on the 20 November.
For more information and to register for this free show see http://www.eventbrite.com/e/ajax-a-conversation-about-returning-veterans-tickets-13336693409.
