Merek Alam of Davison, MI is part of "Soldier's Heart" play

2018 Feb 8

Soldier's Heart is the story of Casey Johnson as she attempts to recover from post-traumatic stress disorder brought on by combat and sexual assault suffered while serving in Iraq. Alma College Theatre's production strives to shed light on and raise the hard questions regarding both of these issues.

Performances for Tammy Ryan's Soldier's Heart are Feb. 8-11 in the Remick Heritage Center, Dance Studio.

"This play is an intimate and disturbing examination of what many veterans face on returning home and the particular challenge too often confronting female service members," says Theatre Director Scott Mackenzie. "Because this play is meant to be intimate, we decided to stage it in the smaller confines of our dance studio with the goal of bringing the audience right into Casey's world."

It was over a year ago when Mackenzie chose this play for production. Since then, sexual assault and harassment in business and politics has more frequently plagued news headlines nationwide.

"Military sexual trauma has been in the headlines for several years now, and I think people have often blamed how badly many women were treated on military culture," says Mackenzie, a veteran of the U.S. Army Reserve. "However, we now know that the problem is much broader."

Mackenzie and cast members hope to take "Soldier's Heart" to the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival in January 2019. Working to make that possible are a full cast and its understudies.