Atrocities

"Towards the close of Charles Duncombe's harrowing ensemble piece about human rights abuses by Russian soldiers in Chechnya, a young man asks incredulously, "It's not really possible for people to act like that, is it?" The answer is self-evident but far from simple, and rooted in paradox. One by one [these] steely-eyed, parlous young men recount nightmarish acts of murder, rape, and torture, committed against men, women, and children. Some speak as if seeking absolution or to assuage tormented consciences, while others glibly justify these acts by war's brutal logic or as necessary acts of vengeance for atrocities perpetrated by the enemy...That we never fully or satisfactorily fathom what makes these men (and others like them) tick is understandable; that we find judging them difficult is what makes the play thought-provoking."--LA Weekly