1st Iraq Veteran Opera Puts Inner Turmoil on Stage After returning from the battlefields of Iraq, Christian Ellis found the only way to soothe the war wounds in his soul was by losing himself singing opera's powerful, haunting songs. Now the 29-year-old former Marine machine gunner - who has attempted suicide four times - is putting his pain on stage in the first opera believed written about the war: "Fallujah." The two-hour performance is an unnerving musical journey into his head. "Fallujah" was developed in Vancouver, Canada, by City Opera Vancouver with the help of a playwright, a composer, nine actors and an 11-member orchestra in a kind of performance laboratory. It will debut July 2 on explore.org/fallujah and will be marketed to opera houses. It is an example of how battlefield trauma after a decade of war is shaping American art as countless veterans, like Ellis, find themselves fighting an even tougher battle at home against horrifying memories, survivor's guilt and sorrow. Art in its various forms is being used as a tool for veterans to come to terms with the bloodshed and adjust to civilian life. Many are telling of their pain in films, books, plays, rap music. Veterans hope by doing so they can foster understanding in a society largely disconnected from the war. In this April 24, 2012 image, former Marine Christian Ellis, 29, holds his dog as he stands for a portrait in his apartment in Denver. Ellis has a swash of red ink among his tattoos for every friend and Marine killed in battle or by suicide. The former Marine machine gunner, who has attempted suicide four times, is putting his pain on stage in the first opera believed written about the Iraq War. The new chamber opera is a project of Explore.org, a philanthropic media organization that is a division of the Los Angeles-based Annenberg Foundation. Philanthropist Charles Annenberg met Ellis at a retreat for veterans with PTSD. Annenberg was moved by the fact the former Camp Pendleton Marine - who had been trained as a classical singer before joining the military - turned to opera to calm his anxiety. With its rich history of conveying heartbreak and human suffering, Annenberg thought opera was the perfect medium because it allows people to feel the fear and turmoil veterans confront daily. He also loved how opera-singing troops break the stereotype of battle-hardened Marines. Ellis is a living example of war's human cost. His chest and arms are covered in tattoos of jagged bolts with red spots representing 33 of his comrades who have died either in battle or by suicide. The opera opens in a veterans' hospital after the main character tries to kill himself. "Ending it's the easy way, easy way out, you say?" the main character sings. He goes on to lament: "I was gonna make something of myself, but war made, war made, war made something else, else of me." The story then transports viewers into the flashbacks that haunt Ellis to this day. Ellis lost his 20s to the Iraq War. He was among the first Marine units to invade Fallujah in 2004, considered to be the war's bloodiest period. He saw close friends blown up. A roadside bomb broke his back before he was sent home. After leaving the Marine Corps, he has struggled to keep a job or relationship. He was arrested for assault in San Diego and wound up homeless, sleeping on friends' couches. He moved to Denver from San Diego to restart his life after he was found unconscious in his San Diego apartment last year by his landlord. He tried to kill himself for the fourth time by overdosing on sleeping pills. He now works as a security guard with other veterans at a Denver bar and sleeps through his days. He said he often feels agitated. He finds peace in singing while cleaning his apartment, where the walls are decorated with inspirational messages.