The theater of war : what ancient Greek tragedies can teach us today

This is the personal and deeply passionate story of a life devoted to reclaiming the timeless power of an ancient artistic tradition to comfort the afflicted. For years, theater director Bryan Doerries has led an innovative public health project that produces ancient tragedies for current and returned soldiers, addicts, tornado and hurricane survivors, and a wide range of other at-risk people in society. Drawing on these extraordinary firsthand experiences, Doerries clearly and powerfully illustrates the redemptive and therapeutic potential of this classical, timeless art: how, for example, Ajax can help soldiers and their loved ones better understand and grapple with PTSD, or how Prometheus Bound provides new insights into the modern penal system. These plays are revivified not just in how Doerries applies them to communal problems of today, but in the way he translates them himself from the ancient Greek, deftly and expertly rendering enduring truths in... This is the personal and deeply passionate story of a life devoted to reclaiming the timeless power of an ancient artistic tradition to comfort the afflicted. For years, theater director Bryan Doerries has led an innovative public health project that produces ancient tragedies for current and returned soldiers, addicts, tornado and hurricane survivors, and a wide range of other at-risk people in society. Drawing on these extraordinary firsthand experiences, Doerries clearly and powerfully illustrates the redemptive and therapeutic potential of this classical, timeless how, for example, Ajax can help soldiers and their loved ones better understand and grapple with PTSD, or how Prometheus Bound provides new insights into the modern penal system. These plays are revivified not just in how Doerries applies them to communal problems of today, but in the way he translates them himself from the ancient Greek, deftly and expertly rendering enduring truths in contemporary and striking English. The originality and generosity of Doerriess work is startling, and The Theater of War wholly unsentimental, but intensely felt and emotionally engagingis a humane, knowledgeable, and accessible book that will both inspire and enlighten. Tracing a path that links the personal to the artistic to the social and back again, Doerries shows us how suffering and healing are part of a timeless process in which dialogue and empathy are inextricably linked. For years theater director Bryan Doerries has been producing ancient Greek tragedies for a wide range of at-risk people in society. His is the personal and deeply passionate story of a life devoted to reclaiming the timeless power of an ancient artistic tradition to comfort the afflicted. #160; Doerries leads an innovative public health projectTheater of Warthat produces ancient dramas for current and returned soldiers, people in recovery from alcohol and substance abuse, tornado and hurricane survivors, and more. Tracing a path that links the personal to the artistic to the social and back again, Doerries shows us how suffering and healing are part of a timeless process in which dialogue and empathy are inextricably linked. #160; The originality and generosity of Doerriess work is startling, and#160; The Theater of War wholly unsentimental, but intensely felt and emotionally engagingis a humane, knowledgeable, and accessible book that will both inspire and enlighten For Years, Theater Director Bryan Doerries Has Led An Innovative Public Health Project That Produces Ancient Tragedies For Current And Returned Soldiers, Addicts, Tornado And Hurricane Survivors, And A Wide Range Of Other At-risk People In Society. Drawing On These Extraordinary Firsthand Experiences, Doerries Clearly And Powerfully Illustrates The Redemptive And Therapeutic Potential Of This Classical, Timeless Art: How, For Example, Ajax Can Help Soldiers And Their Loved Ones Better Understand And Grapple With Ptsd, Or How Prometheus Bound Provides New Insights Into The Modern Penal System.--jacket Flap. Learning Through Suffering -- Ptsd Is From Bc -- American Ajax -- Prometheus In Solitary -- Heracles In Hospice. Bryan Doerries. Includes Bibliographical References (pages [273]-284). "For years, theater director Bryan Doerries has led an innovative public health project that produces ancient tragedies for current and returned soldiers, addicts, tornado and hurricane survivors, and a wide range of other at-risk people in society. Drawing on these extraordinary firsthand experiences, Doerries clearly and powerfully illustrates the redemptive and therapeutic potential of this classical, timeless art: how, for example, Ajax can help soldiers and their loved ones better understand and grapple with PTSD, or how Prometheus Bound provides new insights into the modern penal system."--Front dust jacket flap