Ajax in Iraq

WRITTEN BY ELLEN MCLAUGHLIN
DIRECTED BY JOHN FARMANESH-BOCCA

The Miles Memorial Playhouse, 2014

*** LA TIMES CRITIC'S PICK ***

“A dead on triumph…Director-choreographer John Farmanesh-Bocca rallies his stalwart Not Man Apart Physical Theatre Ensemble forces into breathtaking kinetic cohesion…It would be madness to miss it.” — David C. Nichols, Los Angeles Times

Raw, dynamic, heartfelt, and visceral, Ajax in Iraq parallels the lives of ancient and modern heroes. This stunning physical drama grapples with issues that have become all too well known to the American public – war of occupation, PTSD, sexual abuse, and the price of committing combat troops to situations that may have no end.

Ellen Mclaughlin’s electrifying play intertwines the story of a AJ, a female US Army combatant, with the legend of Ajax, a Greek Hero of the Trojan War who’s story is said to be the first documented case of post-traumatic stress disorder.

The result is shocking, captivating, strangely humorous, and relentlessly honest.

Not Man Apart’s production of Ajax in Iraq was remounted in 2016 at Greenway Court Theatre.