Richard Vergettein Leaving Vietnam , from Andy Jordan Productions, providesan insight into the lives of normal American soldiers who fought in the Vietnamwar. The play starts with his character Jimmy Vanderberg working in a Fordfactory in Detroit. His life is straightforward and simple. But, as worldpolitics heats up, he decides to fight in Vietnam to prove himself a man. Whilst in Vietnam, he befriends a Mexican soldier, Alveress, who makeshim question his racist beliefs about foreigners. Alveress saves his life, andholds him accountable for his behaviour. Upon his return to America, he findsthat his 'simple' relationship with his wife is no longer so straightforward.But, more than that, he clearly struggles with PTSD, and lives in anenvironment where he feels he cannot talk about the trauma he is grapplingwith.
On top of this, as a soldier of a much-disputed war, rather than beingtreated as a hero he finds people, including his own family, questioning hischoice to sign up and fight as a marine. The play fast forwards to recent political history, as we see Vanderbergbecome a Trump supporter, arguing he wanted to 'make America great again' as itwas during the time of the Vietnam War. These beliefs are then challenged as hetakes a trip to the Vietnam War Memorial in Washington with Alveress'son. The play highlights the dire effects society can have on men, who areencouraged to bottle their emotions up and not speak up about their trauma.Through the use of sharp prose, the play offers insight into the effects ofPTSD on soldiers during battle but also upon their way home. It highlights thestruggle of the many soldiers who, despite huge personal sacrifice, were nottreated in the same heroic way as the soldiers from previous wars - despite thedecision to go into war not being their fault, but the fault ofpoliticians. The link between the soldiers losing their purpose, their 'army family',and being pressured to stay silent about the horrors they saw, and their latersupport for Trump, was really interesting. The added angle of Vanderberg's wifecomparing the Trump era to the riots in the 70s was fascinating, althoughpersonally I think more could have been made of this part of the play.
Whilst the prose and the dialogue between the characters Vergette wasdepicting in his one man show was often poignant, there were moments when Ifelt it was too lengthy. For example, a long segment of the show was dedicatedto the time in Vietnam, when more time could have been spent exploring the linkto modern politics, and the link to Trump, as this provided a fascinatingangle. However, overall, the show flowed really well, and successfully delvedinto an area of American politics and history with an angle that I thought wasdifferent, providing a much needed insight into one of the many reasons forTrump's election win. It also highlighted the depth of the personal sacrificesoldiers from all around the world make for their country: whether the war isjustifiable or not, their personal sacrifice remains unmatched. * * * *.