"I guess there were two main points to our endeavour," says O'Hare. "There was the artistic aspect about storytelling and the power of being in a room and trying to reach other people, and then there was the practical point in that we were - are - people who find ourselves to be at war and continuing to use military might to solve problems which, as history shows us, comes at a very high price.
"We weren't scared of approaching The Iliad because we had no plan; we just kind of plunged in with both feet and read it closely with great joy and admiration for the writing and recognising the names of so many great historical characters and figures. Then we had to figure out what the story was that we wanted to tell and it became a question of whether there was one over-arching theme we could explore and how we would pick out the 'best bits'."
Over five years the story became An Iliad and blends verbatim recitals from Homer's account with contemporary riffs on violence, passion, the nature of war and current conflicts, including Syria and Afghanistan. As its way into the tale, it focuses on Iliad heroes Achilles and Hector, warriors on opposing sides who, under different circumstances, might have been friends.
O'Hare describes them as everymen - the hired muscle - who, like so many soldiers throughout history, find themselves in a conflict they have no personal stake in.
A lifelong pacifist who believes war is a waste, O'Hare says he has softened his attitude towards the individuals who fight in wars because joining the military offers the opportunity to escape poverty, gives them a sense of patriotism, and because the promise of career advancement can be powerful inducements to sign up.
"I'm a pacifist by nature and an optimist who believes you can negotiate with most people and, while there have been exceptions, most wars haven't needed to be fought.
"Today, there's been enormous change in the technology used to fight but, sadly, more civilians than ever before are killed and injured. We kill more women and children during war; we make a lot of mistakes."
After performances in Seattle, Chicago and Princeton, An Iliad premiered in New York in 2012 with Stephen Spinella and O'Hare appearing on alternating nights. Usually, it's just O'Hare, who says it's an intense, demanding experience. He speaks almost continuously for 100 minutes and plays up to 13 characters, including a narrator who guides the audience through the story as he seeks to fulfil a mission of his own.
The script is altered for each location An Iliad plays in so conflicts from that specific region can be included; O'Hare was keen to learn more aboutthe New Zealand Wars in preparation for the Wellington season.
"We want to implicate the audience because we want them to engage rather than be passive listeners.
"The narrator starts trying to communicate in ancient Greek but realises that doesn't work, so he walks through the audience asking what language they speak. He wants his story to resonate with them; he wants to know they will see the point he makes."
New Zealand Festival
What: An Iliad
Where and when: Wellington Opera House, March 12-1
Book: http://festival.co.nz/an-iliad/
