'Recovery tool': theatre helps Ukrainian soldiers reintegrate

By AFP/Anatolii Stepanov

Gennadiy Udovenko sat in front of a microphone in a dark room in Kyiv, a spotlight shining on him as he spoke about the loss of his leg in battle.

"I'm okay, just my leg is screwed," the 51-year-old said in a gentle voice, the slow strumming of a dulcimer accompanying him.

After he finished his one-man monologue, the audience applauded.

Udovenko is one of a handful of former and active soldiers telling their stories on stage for "Veterans' Theatre", a project aimed at helping servicemen reintegrate back into civilian life after the trauma of war.

Launched in the spring by Kyiv-based drama group Theatre of Playwrights, the soldiers write and perform pieces personal to them, giving them an outlet for their emotions and a way to build their confidence.

Udovenko worked for Ukraine's special forces before a Russian mine tore his leg off near the southern village of Robotyne, which has seen fierce fighting for more than a year.

His story is similar to those of tens of thousands of Ukrainians wounded since Russia invaded the country in 2022.

The night AFP visited, Udovenko performed a text that he wrote himself.

"I was just given the task to write, to write about the war, and the only story that came to my mind was the loss of my leg," he told AFP.

The project has backing from TRO Media, the communications arm of Ukraine's army.

The organisers hope to be eventually able to stage a play in a Kyiv theatre.

'Fear of losing my dream'

Udovenko put his ideas on paper with help from members of the theatre group.

He said he was guided by his dreams.

"Dreams have everything, including fear," he said, adding that he was motivated by "the fear of losing my dream and not knowing what to do next and what to dream about".

Maksym Devizorov, a professional actor who is now a soldier too, is also taking part in the project, helping fellow soldiers turn their stories into plays.

He helped adapt a text on Ukraine's 2022 counter-offensive in the Kharkiv region, an operation that saw the Ukrainian army retake vast swathes of land from Russia.

Before Moscow invaded, Devizorov spent all his life "doing theatre", and still struggles to believe that he has been in the army for almost three years.

"All my life I was engaged in theatre. My life was carefree... I could have never thought that I would be in the army," he told AFP.

"And with the war, everything changed."

On stage with four other soldiers, he recreated the first hours of the counter-offensive in front of a captivated audience.

Some civilians also took part in the project, recounting their war experiences, for instance the occupation of the town of Irpin near Kyiv for several weeks in 2022.

Irpin, on the outskirts of the capital, was the scene of Russian atrocities and has become a symbol of Ukrainian resistance.

Transfer to civilian life 

Both the soldiers and playwrights said the experience of telling stories on stage provided relief, as society deals with the long-term mental health consequences of the war.

Maksym Kurochkin, the creative director of Theatre of Playwrights and a serviceman, said the project was a huge morale boost.

Veterans telling their stories is a "powerful tool for recovery" that will allow traumatised people to "find their future again, confidence in their soul and their body," he said.

At the start of the project, the soldiers lacked confidence, he added.

"They would apologise for not being the heroes that they wanted to be," Kurochkin said, adding that the men also struggled when thinking of their comrades who had died or were still fighting.

But in theatre, he "saw their confidence come back."

That is the case for Udovenko, who said that sharing his experience with ordinary people would help him re-integrate into normal life.

"There is a stereotype that people who have been through war have a desire to forget," he said.

"For me, this is an experience that I can transfer to civilian life."