Invitation Only
Theater of War: Ajax United States Naval Academy
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Fri, Oct 13.2023
Theater of War Productions presents community-specific, theater-based projects that address pressing health and social issues. The company works with leading film, theater, and television actors to deliver dramatic readings of seminal plays, followed by town hall-style discussions designed to confront social issues by drawing out raw and personal reactions to themes highlighted in the performances. The guided discussions will underscore how the plays resonate with the Midshipmen, Faculty, and Staff and invite audience members to share their perspectives and experiences. The goal of these events is to break down stigmas, foster empathy and awareness, enhance compassion, promote engaged leadership and a deeper understanding of complex issues that will serve the MIDN well as they develop and grow as future naval officers.
Featuring performances by Chad Coleman (The Wire, The Walking Dead), Taylor Schilling (Orange is the New Black, Dear Edward), and Bryce Pinkham (Mercy Street, The Blacklist). Directed and facilitated by Bryan Doerries.
All three events will take place in Alumni Hall.
About the play
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Ajax by Sophocles
Sophocles’ Ajax tells the story of a fierce warrior who is passed over for recognition by his command after losing his cousin Achilles in battle during the Trojan War. Feeling betrayed, Ajax attempts to murder his superior officers, fails, and—ultimately—takes his own life. The play tells the story of the events leading up to Ajax’ suicide, as well as the story of his wife and troops’ attempt to intervene before it's too late. The play also depicts the devastating impact of Ajax’ suicide upon his wife, son, brother, troops, and chain of command.
Cast Members
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Chad Coleman
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Taylor Schilling
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Alex Morf
Explore Projects
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Caregiving & DeathThe Nurse AntigoneA groundbreaking project by and for nurses, The Nurse Antigone presents dramatic readings of Sophocles’ Antigone on Zoom—featuring professional actors and a chorus of frontline nurses—to help frame powerful, guided discussions about the unique challenges faced by nurses before, during, and after the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Pandemic & Climate CrisisThe Oedipus ProjectThe Oedipus Project presents acclaimed actors reading scenes from Sophocles’ Oedipus the King as a catalyst for powerful, constructive, global conversations about the climate crisis, ecological disaster, environmental justice, and healing online conversations about the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic upon diverse communities throughout the world. Sophocles’ ancient play, first performed in 429 BC, just after the first wave of a plague that killed nearly one-third of the Athenian population, is a story of arrogant leadership, ignored prophecy, intergenerational curses, and a pestilence and ecological collapse that ravages the archaic city of Thebes. Seen through this lens, Oedipus the King appears to have been a powerful tool for helping Athenians communalize trauma and loss, while interrogating their own complicit role in the suffering, not just of those around them but of generations to come.
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Racism & Social JusticeA REFUTATIONA REFUTATION presents dramatic readings by acclaimed actors of excerpts from two conflicting historic accounts of Philadelphia’s 1793 yellow fever epidemic as a catalyst for guided audience discussions about health inequities in America today, grounded in the perspectives of nurses, caregivers, and first responders.