Support for LAist comes from
Local and national news, NPR, things to do, food recommendations and guides to Los Angeles, Orange County and the Inland Empire
Stay Connected
Listen

Share This

This is an archival story that predates current editorial management.

This archival content was written, edited, and published prior to LAist's acquisition by its current owner, Southern California Public Radio ("SCPR"). Content, such as language choice and subject matter, in archival articles therefore may not align with SCPR's current editorial standards. To learn more about those standards and why we make this distinction, please click here.

Arts and Entertainment

Vets Tell the Real Story

Congress has cut federal funding for public media — a $3.4 million loss for LAist. We count on readers like you to protect our nonprofit newsroom. Become a monthly member and sustain local journalism.

()

As the culminating event of a fifteen week workshop that joined veterans, performing artists, and activists in a series of verbal and physical conversations about their lives and aspirations, "Action Conversations" was presented at Highways Performance Space for only three performances, February 8-9. Through a collaborative process under the direction of UCLA professor and choreographer Victoria Marks, the performers revealed some of the highlights of their explorations of identity, heroics, mortality and civic responsibility in this sixty minute work.

A consummate dancemaker who has worked with professionals and non-performers internationally, Marks brought together original texts written by the collaborators spiked with small bursts of movement for these wounded men and their onstage allies. Modeled on a pilot project created by another choreographer, Ellen Bromberg in Salt Lake City, Utah a year ago, the words were both poetic and therapeutic descriptions of these soldiers' experiences with Post Traumatic Stress Disorders (PTSD). The resulting script was very personal and emotional and, hopefully, contained moments of catharsis for these undervalued men. Perhaps it also provided closure to some of life's more devastating times for them. For me, it was a peek behind the screens of patriotism, Rambo-like films and culturally conditioned machismo.

The men's stories of anguish, depression, self-destruction and elusive hopes for a brighter future were disturbing, unsettling, and almost unbelievable in the midst of our southern California comfort. Each recounting was almost sadder than the next. But, Marks and her comrades did well as they also talked about lighter subjects and other anecdotes during the evening. Still, their physical depiction of a bombing raid complete with grown men as arms-spread-wide jet bombers, a single arm circling overhead helicopter and all the vocal sounds that brought this adrenaline/testosterone moment of excitement and fear to life in this small black box theater was an image to hold on to for the future.

Support for LAist comes from

The courageous performers included former Marine Manuel Flores, former Coast Guard Aaron McCollum, John Tingley (Air Force), Cid Williams (Air Force medic), UCLA PhD student Eva Aymamy, Salvation Army program director David Leonard and Marks. The simple yet dramatically effective lighting was by in-house designer Jason Mace.

photo by Joe Holmes, courtesy of Flickr

As Editor-in-Chief of our newsroom, I’m extremely proud of the work our top-notch journalists are doing here at LAist. We’re doing more hard-hitting watchdog journalism than ever before — powerful reporting on the economy, elections, climate and the homelessness crisis that is making a difference in your lives. At the same time, it’s never been more difficult to maintain a paywall-free, independent news source that informs, inspires, and engages everyone.

Simply put, we cannot do this essential work without your help. Federal funding for public media has been clawed back by Congress and that means LAist has lost $3.4 million in federal funding over the next two years. So we’re asking for your help. LAist has been there for you and we’re asking you to be here for us.

We rely on donations from readers like you to stay independent, which keeps our nonprofit newsroom strong and accountable to you.

No matter where you stand on the political spectrum, press freedom is at the core of keeping our nation free and fair. And as the landscape of free press changes, LAist will remain a voice you know and trust, but the amount of reader support we receive will help determine how strong of a newsroom we are going forward to cover the important news from our community.

Please take action today to support your trusted source for local news with a donation that makes sense for your budget.

Thank you for your generous support and believing in independent news.

Chip in now to fund your local journalism
A row of graphics payment types: Visa, MasterCard, Apple Pay and PayPal, and  below a lock with Secure Payment text to the right
(
LAist
)

Trending on LAist