In January 2003, two women in New York City, Kathryn Blume and Sharron Bower, thought to organize readings of the ancient Greek play by Aristophanes, Lysistrata, as a protest of the imminent preemptive war on Iraq. Originally conceived as a local event, however, over the course of a several weeks, word of the Lysistrata Project quickly gained momentum and became a worldwide happening for peace. On March 3, 2003 over 1,000 simultaneous productions of Lysistrata were performed in 59 countries around the globe.

The film "Operation Lysistrata" shows how two women transformed their individual aspirations for peace into a movement which allowed the global community to share in their vision, using grassroots activism, conflict resolution, community building and the role of art in a functioning democracy.

The organized readings of the ancient Greek play, all done on the same day, March 3, 2003. It was extraordinarily successful, as theatre companies, schools and organizations throughout the world joined the project.

Since January 2003, Aquapio Films has shot or received more than two hundred hours of video footage. Tapes of readings poured in from nearly every U.S. State as well England, Iceland, Greece, Australia, Italy, Montreal, Nova Scotia, and many more. We have a reading from a Kurdish refugee camp and one from Havana. It's been a truly amazing experience. Celebrities as well as small theatre companies world-wide turned out in force for this unique event.