Women and War

The most recent play our group attended, Women and War, was very powerful. An ensemble cast of six sought to tell the stories of women who have been affected by war. There were some spectacular, stand-out performances. The woman who played the rape victim interpreted the role with sensitivity and respect. This same actress also played the role of an African-American soldier. Her interpretation was spot on. One can clearly see how this work would be extremely challenging and rewarding for an actor.

That being said, an aspect of the performance that I found frustrating was the lack of diversity of the cast. I believe it is safe to say that a majority of the people most directly affected by war in the past 50 years have not been of European descent. The cast of the play did not reflect this diversity. I know that it would take a very large ensemble cast to represent all women touched by war, but there were only one or two actors who were not white. There were no Asian actors, though there were numerous stories about Vietnamese war survivors. A more diverse cast certainly would have strengthened the production.

Despite these flaws, this was a brave production which sought to explore a topic that is rarely discussed in mainstream circles. This play could definitely serve as a conversation starter or as a culminating event after a classroom study of war time experiences. One might partner this play with a reading of a war memoir written by a woman. Of course, this production would be for a mature audience. I don't think it would be appropriate for many high school students, but would be well suited to a college-level class.