Troubles of Iraq vets all too real

A pertinent charge runs through “Wounded” in its American premiere. This impressive Los Angeles Theatre Ensemble project, drawn from interviews with Iraq war veterans and their families, depicts the personal toll of war with visceral intensity and graphic honesty.

The co-production with Powerhouse Theatre, first presented at the 2005 Edinburgh Fringe Festival, takes place at the Fisher House rehabilitation home at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C. After a prologue from a supplicant Iraqi woman (Lauren Eckstrom), “Wounded” presents self-described healer Doc (Albert Meijer), a Navy Corpsman whose heroism cost him a leg, and sardonic Bill (Emeka Nnadi), a Marine sergeant blinded by a roadside bomb.

They and double amputee Beth (Emily Rose), a Black Hawk pilot determined to return to combat, are at the center of “Wounded,” which turns on raw military humor, ambivalent emotions and stringently balanced pro- and antiwar arguments. Rounding out the cast are Ellen (Morgan Early), Doc’s frustrated wife, and Angel (Carly Reeves), a student with conflicts about her critically injured boyfriend, Andy (Eric Ancker), seen in prewar flashback.

Director Tom Burmester expertly negotiates the clashes and revelations. Designer Francois-Pierre Couture’s stark set and lighting keep the stakes front and center, and the stalwart ensemble, which includes Carrie Bradac’s therapist and Spencer Nicholas’ nurse, is physically invested and wholly affecting.

Their imposing commitment offsets occasional theater-by-committee inequities of tone and structure. The archetypal maneuvering and surface exposition sometime betray the lack of a single authorial voice, and the poetic nonverbal sequences almost seem like another show. Yet, the urgent timeliness of “Wounded” is unmistakable and recommends this harrowing, thought-provoking drama.

“Wounded,” Powerhouse Theatre, 3116 2nd St., Santa Monica. 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays. Also, 7 p.m. June 11. Ends June 17. Mature audiences. $20. (310) 396-3680, Ext. 3 or www.latensemble.org. Running time: 1 hour, 55 minutes.