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Daemen awarded $2083 from the NY Council for the Humanities for Theater of War, presented by The Philoctetes Project
Daemen has been awarded a grant of $2083 from the New York Council for the Humanities to bring the bring Theater of War, presented by the Philoctetes Project, to the Daemen campus.
On Saturday, November 15th, at 1 p.m. in the Wick Social Room, Daemen will host a dramatic reading of the Greek plays “Philoctetes” and “Ajax”. A panel discussion will take place after the readings. The event is free and open to the Daemen community and to the public. Refreshments will be served.
Andrew Wise, Associate Professor of History & Government, coordinated the development of the proposal to the NY Council for the Humanities and the event, and he is serving as the project director and moderator of the panel discussion. Christian Brandjes, Assistant Professor of Theater, will be working with the leader of The Philoctetes Project, Bryan Doerries, on staging the dramatic readings. Cheryl Nosek, Assistant Professor or Nursing, and James Moran, Professor of Philosophy & Religious Studies, will participate in the panel discussion.
The leader of The Philoctetes Project, Bryan Doerries, will be here to coordinate the production and speak on the panel. In addition, David Gerber, professor and chair of the History Department at the University at Buffalo, whose book Disabled Veterans in History includes an essay on "Philoctetes", and Louis Musilli, local Iraq War veteran, will serve on the panel.
In the original play by Sophocles, Philoctetes had a painful foot wound, but was badly traumatized when his fellow soldiers left him behind, advancing to the next battle. The other man, Ajax, fell into a dark emotional hole, suffering symptoms that today are recognized as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.
Theater director Bryan Doerries saw such a strong parallel between Sophocles plays and today’s PTSD, that he created the enterprise called The Philoctetes Project. He translates Sophocles for modern audiences, emphasizing plays centered on war and its shattering effects on those who wage it, and the families that grapple with its consequences. The 2400 year old play “Philoctetes” has become a catalyst for discussion between diverse audiences about heath care, chronic illness, and veterans returning from war who are struggling with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.
“Bryan Doerries successful efforts to make classical theater relevant to a 21st century audience resonated with me,” noted Andrew Wise. “All of us who are involved with bringing this production to Western New York through Daemen College believe in the relevance of the play for deepening our understanding of the difficulty of the situation disabled veterans face today.”
Two and a half millenniums later, Doerries says little has changed when it comes to the needs of soldiers coming home. That will be the focus of the panel discussions following the performance at the College.
A PDF flyer about the event can be downloaded at http://www.daemen.edu/offices/grants/philoctetes.pdf
There will also be a dramatic reading of both plays at 1 p.m. on Sunday, November 16, at the New Phoenix Theater in Buffalo http://www.newphoenixtheatre.com/ .
For more information, please contact Andrew Wise at awise@daemen.edu.