PHOENIX — Actor Gary Sinise has gained fame in roles including Lt. Dan Taylor in "Forrest Gump," Ken Mattingly in "Apollo 13" and Burt Hammersmith in "The Green Mile."
Sinise is now using his name to support unsung heroes on the theater stage who are U.S. veterans.
This weekend you can join Sinise’s cause by joining the audience inside the Herberger Theater Center.
“It’s rooted in reality and rooted in real life,” Sinise said.
The Gary Sinise Foundation is presenting the play "Last Out: Elegy of a Green Beret" on Friday and Saturday at the Phoenix theater.
Sinise said this is the second stop of the play’s six-city tour.
“It’s performed by men and women who have given a lot for our country, who have sacrificed, who have served, so we're trying to support them by getting the word out,” Sinise said.
"Last Out" was written and is also performed by retired Lt. Col. Scott Mann.
The other actors and behind-the-scenes staff are also made up of veterans and others who are connected to military service.
The storytelling is a way for the veterans to heal, but it also helps to share the realities of war with civilians.
“We want them to tell their story,” Sinise said. “We want them to talk about what they’re going through because we want to help them heal.”
The Gary Sinise Foundation works to support veterans and their mental health.
Sinise’s mission of combining art and veteran support dates to his co-founding of Chicago’s Steppenwolf Theatre Company in 1974.
He directed the Vietnam veteran drama "Tracers" at Steppenwolf in the 1980s.
Decades later he’s now helping to support this new interpretation taking center stage by veterans who served in Afghanistan.
“It’s very difficult for our soldiers who served there and sacrificed, and saw friends and families lose loved ones,” Sinise said. “It’s very hard to process after 20 years of sacrifice in Afghanistan so we can help them.”
The Herberger performances of "Last Out" are Friday, June 9, at 7 p.m. and Saturday, June 10, at 1 p.m. and 7 p.m.
You can find tickets on the show’s website.
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