Kate Wenner's "Theatrical Journey"

Kate Wenner (image source).

Playwright of current Second Stage production, Make Sure It's Me, Kate Wenner, wrote an article on the process behind the writing of this emotionally-charged play about the effects of unseen post-war injuries, like PTSD and traumatic brain injuries. 

Below are some excerpts from an article by Wenner:

...I watched a news report on what was then a virtually unknown new war injury. Iraq and Afghanistan vets were suffering permanent brain damage from the powerful blasts of roadside bombs.

I got a message in my inbox [after finishing the script] – an offer of a two-week workshop performance in Colorado in the fall... Talk about a journey. But that’s not the kind of journey my father was extolling in his caution not to get so hung up on the destination that you miss what you had to learn along the way.

Jim Frangione had invited a handful of vets living at Soldier On’s homeless shelter [see the video above from Soldier On's web site] to come talk with our actors to help them understand what returning vets go through. Now it was my turn to cry, as these proud and tender young men got up the courage to talk about the breakups of their marriages, their struggles with their abusive tempers, their problems with drug and alcohol abuse, and their fervent desire to be back in Iraq, if only to have once more the love and support of their buddies. 

So now, when I look back at what motivated me to write this play, I see that in the beginning it was an abstract idea. It’s the journey that made it real by introducing me to the amazing young men and women I have met along the way. Both their pain and their pride are now lodged in my heart.

You can see the whole entry here from Berkshire Playwrights Lab.

Make Sure It's Me
Thurs. - Sat., Sept. 13-23 | 7:30 p.m. (Thurs - Sat), 2 p.m. (Sun)
TICKETS: $15, $10 for active military
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