REVIEW: 'Lonely Soldiers' Review: Play highlights hell of being a woman at war
Pioneer Press
by Renee Valois
March 17, 2014
This is powerful stuff. It's theater that begs for real change.
"Lonely Soldiers: Women at War in Iraq" at History Theatre follows the paths of seven women of diverse backgrounds who ended up in Iraq. It's based on accounts from interviews playwright Helen Benedict conducted that appeared in her 2009 nonfiction book. It's packed with incidents of hope and fury, outrage and grief.
Women were deployed in combat positions for the first time during the Iraq war, but some of the toughest battles those female soldiers faced were with the men who were supposed to have their backs. As one woman says, military men categorize them as "bitches, ho's or dykes." That's it. There are no other options. And they get treated accordingly.
We discover that some women enlisted to escape tragedies at home, while others wanted to serve their country or help others. None encountered what they expected, and all came home changed in drastic and terrible ways.
Jamecia Bennett stands out as an experienced soldier who isn't afraid to tell the officers they're screwing up. She speaks for the kids -- several of the women are just 17 and were too young to sign up without the consent of their parents.
In the case of one innocent Christian teen played by Tamara Clark, her religious mother actually pushed her to join in order to proselytize her fellow soldiers. Their ignorance is shattering.
The women's worst ordeals come about as a result of the military's policies and attitudes -- which put them in more danger from American men than from the Iraqis. Women are constantly harassed and worse. Dawn Brodey conveys the agony of a soldier who learns her rape will be silenced (and blamed on her) by those in command.
Through Rhiana Yazzie, Shana Berg, Meghan Kreidler and Hope Cervantes, we also meet an American Indian who sees similarities between traditional Iraqi culture and her own and decries America's destruction of Iraq; we learn that military "love" is convenient, not lasting; and we see the long-term aftereffects of the war on soldiers who have trouble returning to civilian life. Santino Craven, an Iraq war veteran, takes on all of the male roles in the production.
Director Austene Van keeps the show moving like a series of stabbings that make you want to do more than bind up the wounds. This production prods us to find a way to prevent the physical and mental assaults military women have endured from all sides.
"The Things They Carried," which is running in repertory with this show, conveys some of the hell of war, but this show exposes the agony of more recent wounds that have not healed. It drives us toward reform, in the world of war and beyond.
What: "Lonely Soldiers: Women at War in Iraq"
Where: History Theatre, 30 E. 10th St., St. Paul
When: Through April 6
Tickets: $32-40; senior/student discounts
Information: 651-292-4323; HistoryTheatre.com
Capsule: Powerful, devastating and illuminating