This show is part of the 15th Annual Indianapolis Theatre Fringe Festival, a/k/a IndyFringe, Aug. 15-25, 2019 on Mass Ave downtown. Info, etc., at www.IndyFringe.org.

By John Lyle Belden

C. Neil Parsons, bass trombonist and member of the comic ensemble, The Fourth Wall, presents a much more serious performance: a tribute to his father, Christopher Parsons, who served in the First Infantry Division in Vietnam, and was tapped by the Army to take photographs of the war and those who fought it.

The elder Parsons was also involved in the arts. He was a theatre director when he was drafted in 1968. The discipline he had developed for the stage — the ability to be still, attention to detail — served him well as he would be on “point” (the vulnerable first soldier out) on patrols. While he miraculously avoided serious physical injury, he would come to understand that the war had wounded him in a far deeper fashion.

Neil presents a slide show of his father’s photographs, and reads from his letters. He also plays haunting music on his instrument and gives his own perspective by reciting essays on Pain Tolerance, Chronic Pain, Permanence, and Betrayal — autobiographical insights that allow us to see the father in the son.

“Someone must not forget,” he says. And as a reminder, Neil offers buttons with lines from his father’s favorite Shakespeare passage. But it’s unlikely anyone will forget the tragic beauty of this very personal story of one man that resonates with the loss of thousands.

Remaining performances are Friday and Saturday (Aug. 23-24) at the District Theater (former TOTS location), 627 Massachusetts Ave.