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If you have never experienced the power of theatre, try it on steroids with a cast of children. Yes, you read that right; CHILDREN. I just came from the opening night of Pennsylvania Youth Theatre’s production of The Diary of Anne Frank at the Charles Brown Icehouse.
If you don’t know [I try not to make assumptions, so if you do know, skip ahead], the story is an adaptation of the book, “Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl.” The original adaptation was produced on Broadway in 1955, winning a Pulitzer. It was then produced as a movie in 1959 with Shelly Winters in the lead role, earning her an Oscar. Wendy Kesselman revised the theatrical adaptation in 1997. Why the history lesson? In part to showcase some small measure of masterwork as perceived by other artists. But also to balance these accolades with the power of the story itself, especially against the backdrop of current politics.
This production is lovingly directed by Mary Wright. The designers of the stage, costumes and sound authentically create an environment which helps transform these young actors into a Jewish family hiding from the Nazis in 1940s Amsterdam. The audience is set close to the stage, which is not a straight line. Attics don’t have straight walls and ceilings. The triangles in the stage design remind us of that low head space. Getting to your set, you climb around chairs and people, feeling cramped and suffocated. There was a very eerie part of the play near the end of the first act. The IceHouse is at times on the flight path for planes landing at LV Airport. The plane was so close, it shook the building. The actors responded to it; just as if it was a low flying bomber plane. Across the Lehigh river, there is a busy freight line. The actors respond to sound of passing trains, too. In my opinion, that’s excellent directing. I’m compelled to share her director’s note from the program here. Because I believe that knowing a bit of what inspired the director, gives the audience a little more perspective on the show.
Annalies Marie Frank was born in German, grew up in Amsterdam, dreamed of being a famous writer some day, and died in a Concentration Camp in Germany when she was not quite 16 years old. And yet, her writings in her diary have indeed kept her memory, her life, her thoughts and ideals alive long after her death. She was a precocious, funny, fierce and intensely thoughtful young writer.
It has been my honor and privilege to work with another group of budding artists with dreams of their own, on this play bringing Anne Frank’s diary to life. In a day and age when as a society we are again faced with the images of Nazi’s marching in the streets, it is more timely than ever to be reminded of what can happen when hatred runs rampant. [bold is my emphasis]
The actors you are about to watch have found ways to bring light to their characters, and light to their world, through the rehearsal process. We have discovered that in the mist of darkness and despair there can still be moments of joy, and love, and goodness.
We offer this production in honor of the real people whose lives are portrayed here.
If you’ve been thinking about going, don’t think too long. There are only three more shows, Saturday (February 17th) at 1:00pm and 5:00pm and Sunday (February 18th) at 2:00pm. Tickets are $15. The seats are GA – which means, they’re not assigned. PYT does a really great job explaining their ticketing policies. Guess their box office gets these questions many times. Good to review them here. Yes, tickets are available at the door. If you go, there is parking in the lot next to the IceHouse. If that’s full, there is available parking in the city lot on the south west corner of Main and Lehigh streets; not the parking lot of the Wooden Match. It’s a five minute walk away from the venue, so give yourself extra time. Best to plan to arrive at the location 15 minutes before the starting time. Oh, and they sell concessions in the lobby, and have two actors in character interacting with the audience.
PYT has also done an interesting community give back. Anne Frank’s father, Otto ran a business that produced pectin, the ingredient that makes jam and jelly firm up. PYT encourages audience members to bring plastic jars of jam or jelly to the performance to help stock up a local food pantry. I confess, all of the unopened jars of jam in my house were home made from the summer’s fruit bounty, so I brought a jar of peanut butter. It was gladly accepted as well.
My personal reflection
The interaction of the actors, the compelling story, the whole environment is definitely worth experiencing. When we learn about what happened to people in different times and in different countries, we begin to understand our commonalities. It’s a great show to bring your kids (I recommend ages 10-18) to see. Anne was a precocious teenage girl. She was thirteen years old when she went into hiding. My daughter is now 14 years old. It touched a place in my soul that has been aching this week after the Parkland, FL shooting. Young lives tragically lost. And so many adults just watched it happen and say, “Such a shame, but what can we do?”
We turn back into our humanity to rekindle the strength we need to stand up for what is right.
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