former submarine mechanic Ed Holmes shares his tales in Kittery in ‘Subhuman.’

The submarine was floating in tropical waters and the sailors were barbecuing on deck. There was war in Vietnam and a young Ed Holmes dove down into the seemingly endless depths of 25,000 feet.

“I had a quasi-mystical experience,” he said.

The Navy veteran relates this and other tales in “Subhuman: True Tales From Beneath the Sea.” The show will be performed in close proximity to the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard and the Albacore submarine museum, at The Dance Hall in Kittery, Maine, on Friday and Saturday, Sept. 30 and Oct. 1, at 8 p.m.

The solo performance tells mostly true stories of “danger, discovery and destiny” as told by a mechanic aboard a diesel submarine in the Pacific Ocean.

“The show is about how you make your choices and how choices are made for you,” Holmes said.
As a young man, he found himself in a war he didn’t want to fight, “bored, hot, tired and smelly,” he said. “I’m asking myself, ‘How the fuck did I get here?’”

Holmes likens the show to a sailor walking into a bar and regaling the patrons with his sea stories. His adventures speak of “fires, drunks and fights, and hookers,” but the overall experience taught him about the freedom to make better choices for the future. 

He said he hopes to inspire people to look at their own lives, how they got there, and how they can end up where they want to be.

Holmes said serving during Vietnam radicalized him. He doesn’t believe in sending soldiers overseas for the wrong reasons. “I was lied to, basically,” he said. “Vietnam was a lie.”

He has performed in front of many other veterans, who thanked him for telling their side. But, he said, their wives also appreciate his insights into the male mind of a Vietnam vet.

“I realized I wasn’t doing what I wanted to do and I didn’t know what I wanted to do,” he said.
After seven years in the Navy, Holmes attended college on the GI Bill. He found theater, and went on to get his master’s in dance. He has performed and taught physical theater in the San Francisco Bay Area for the past 40 years.

Holmes has performed with mimes, comedians, actors, an opera, and symphony. For the past 25 years, he has performed with the award-winning, socially relevant San Francisco Mime Troupe as a collective member, actor and director. “That’s my kind of theater,” he said.

He has also appeared in movies, including “The Right Stuff,” of which he is most proud, as well as “Howard the Duck,” “Golden Gate” and “Monkeybone,” but he never pursued a full film career because he didn’t want to move to Los Angeles. Holmes has also taught physical theater at workshops, schools and to professional computer animators.

“Subhuman” has been performed in bars and VFW halls all over Northern California. Originally from Cleveland, Ohio, Holmes now lives in Berkeley, Calif.

Drika Overton, founder of The Dance Hall, is a former colleague of Holmes. A reception with the artist will follow Saturday’s performance.

The Dance Hall is at 7 Walker St., Kittery, Maine, 207-703-2083 www.thedancehallkittery.org. Tickets are $18.