Andrew Steggall went to Iraq to recruit actors for The Soldier's Tale. Six months, eight bodyguards and one torture centre later, he found them ...

The Guardian [The Guardian, 12 January 2006]

May 26 2005

My first day in Baghdad. I'm here to cast Iraqi actors to appear alongside British actors and musicians in a new adaptation of Stravinsky's The Soldier's Tale, to be performed in English and Arabic. Helmet and flak jacket in place, I'm led to a helicopter that will take me to the centre of the city. Throughout the short journey, a soldier darts from one side of the helicopter to the other, alternating between two fixed machine guns, scanning the rooftops below. I try to work out his pattern. Very little makes sense right now.