Arts Intranet

Los Angeles-based theater company C.R.E. Outreach has launched Heroes' Stories, programming for war veterans to honor and empower our country's brave service members. In partnership with New Directions at its local Veterans’ Affairs office, the program gives vets a safe outlet to voice their own heroic experiences and stories.

C.R.E. stands for create, reflect, and empower, and the organization uses theatre to enhance self-esteem, encourage self-expression and empower individuals to overcome the challenges in their lives. Next up for C.R.E. is a groundbreaking musical called Beyond Sight, which tells the story of U.S. soldier Jack Carter, whose life is forever changed when he is blinded during combat in Afghanistan. Upon his return, he is forced to face the challenges of reintegrating back into society without his vision.

Beyond Sight is so much more than a musical - it is a project that C.R.E. hopes will raise awareness about the struggles of our nation’s service members and garner support for these brave men and women as they return to civilian life.

According to the Bureau of Labor statistics, there are more than 2.3 million soldiers who have served in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. One out of four of these soldiers returns with a service-related disability. In addition to physical injuries, many veterans also suffer from emotional and psychological conditions including Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, guilt, and depression. Far too often, these individuals don’t receive adequate care and support to address these issues. Beyond Sight is an empowering story of hope and courage meant to prove that these individuals are not defined by their disabilities and can live successful and fulfilling lives.

Development for Beyond Sight began three years ago when C.R.E. Outreach’s acting troupe, Theatre by the Blind, in partnership with the Braille Institute of Los Angeles, presented a production focused on the challenges of disabilities in military families. Then, in June 2013, C.R.E. Outreach brought another production, Which Direction, to a stage at the Veterans’ Affairs office in Los Angeles—an original production that depicts the amazing untold stories of a group of military veterans. Their stories and real accounts of war on the front lines inspired C.R.E. to begin production on Beyond Sight. Subsequent interviews with veterans lead to a script that realistically portrays military lives and experiences in authentic detail. One of the keys to authenticity for this new production will be Beyond Sight’s casting of military veterans and blind actors in key roles.

The show will premiere in Los Angeles in spring 2014. However, after the premiere, C.R.E. Outreach hopes to have Beyond Sight tour the nation, spreading this important message to everyone. One of the vets that C.R.E. works with summarizes why projects like Beyond Sight are so significant:

"The last 12 years have taken a toll on all of us. For some, the scars are obvious, and for others they are hidden but still there. All of us come back changed, some of us more than others. I think this project is great because it will help remind people that these changes are lifelong. My biggest fear is that as the war ends in the next year and the American public's attention moves to something else, the numerous Vet support efforts that have sprung up will die, and soldiers like Jack, will be forgotten. Projects like this can help people to remember."

C.R.E. Outreach is not the only arts organization working with returning veterans. The military has identified four areas as critical to the success and preparedness of our troops: Readiness, Resiliency, Retention, and Reintegration. Artists and arts organizations are uniquely suited to help service members in these four critical areas by the very nature of the work they already do – using art to help people express themselves and build bridges through shared experiences in a community.

For more information about how organizations like C.R.E. can utilize the arts to tell our hero’s stories, Americans for the Arts has released a report Arts, Health, and Well-Being Across the Military Continuum - White Paper and Framing a National Plan for Action with recommendations in the areas of research, practice, and policy. You can download the full report here.