Stetson University presents Reflections on Vietnam: An Oral History Performance, Saturday, Nov. 14, at 8 p.m., and Sunday, Nov. 15, at 3 p.m., in Stetson Theatre Arts’ “Second Stage” located inside the Museum of Art, 600 N. Woodland Blvd., adjacent to the DeLand campus.

Complementing the Vietnam Memorial Remembrance Site that will be dedicated on Saturday, Nov. 14, at 11 a.m., Stetson University’s Theatre Arts Department will be presenting an oral history performance about the Vietnam War.

Reflections on Vietnam: An Oral History Performance will be honoring the experiences of the American soldiers who fought in the Vietnam War. Five talented theatre arts students will be reading aloud several letters written by soldiers while serving in Vietnam. The production sheds light on the way these soldiers lived their daily lives in Vietnam. In many ways, these letters offer a counter-narrative to the public story that was being told about the War in Vietnam.

“I’m really grateful that several Stetson alumni that served in the Vietnam War have been gracious enough to share several of their personal letters with us,” said Julia Schmitt, Ph.D., associate professor and director of Theatre Arts. “We have included a few of those letters in our performance, and I believe it has enabled the cast to feel even more invested in this production because they’ve been able to connect with alumni in such a profound way.”

Michael Galvez, a cast member in the production and a senior theatre arts major said, “Hailing from a family who has a history of fighting in several wars, I am glad to have my first collegiate stage credit be a production that pays tribute to the men and women who bravely served during the Vietnam War.”

For this production, Theatre Arts will be collaborating with Digital Arts by producing special video montages and still photos for the production. These digital art creations are meant to juxtapose archival video footage of architects of the Vietnam War, such as President Johnson, alongside more personal photos and video clips of the soldiers in the field.

Come join us as the Theatre Arts Program takes time to reflect on the courage and sacrifice of those individuals who were most heavily involved in the Vietnam War.

Actors include: Erin Foster, Michael Galvez, Peter Nyong’o, Austin Scott and Ngai’o Warrington.

To learn more about the Vietnam Memorial, click here.

Admission for this performance is free to the public, but seating is limited. We recommend you arrive 30 minutes prior to curtain to secure a ticket. For information or reservations, call Stetson Theatre’s “Second Stage” box office at (386) 822-8700.

By Grace Aguda