''The White Rose'' was written by
Lillian Garrett-Groag
Lillian Groag (born Liliana C. Groag) is an Argentine-American playwright, theater director, and actress. Her plays include ''The Ladies of the Camellias'', ''The Magic Fire'', and '' The White Rose''.
Early life and career
Lillian Groag was b ...
and premiered in 1991 at the
Old Globe Theatre in
San Diego, Calif. The play chronicles the arrest, interrogation and eventual execution of a group of
University of Munich students who protested the
Nazi regime at the height of
World War II. The students assigned to themselves the name
White Rose.
"The play has roles for seven males and one female. The strongest roles belong to
Robert Mohr
Robert Mohr (5 April 1897 – 5 February 1977) was an interrogation specialist of the Gestapo. He headed the special commission responsible for the search and arrest of the White Rose, part of the German Resistance to Nazism.
Early life
Robert ...
, the head of the Munich
Gestapo, and
Sophie Scholl, one of the students. Mohr, moved by Scholl's passion (and mindful that she is German, but not Jewish), attempts to save her by giving her a chance to recant, but she refuses. The play ends with a spotlight on Scholl snapping off, symbolizing her beheading, and Mohr musing, "The most we can hope for is to get by. Heroes and ... (''carefully'') demagogues will always shake things up for a while, but if we're clever, we'll still be here when they're gone." At which point, a Gestapo investigator attempts to be encouraging, noting that people like Mohr "are of enormous use to the Reich." Thus concludes the theme of the play, that people, not monsters, are responsible for great communal disasters, and each of those people had a "moment of choice," according to Garrett-Groag in her ''Foreword''.
''The White Rose'' won the AT&T Award for New American Plays.
Proposed film adaptation
On January 24, 1991, Bruce Kerner was interested in producing the film adaptation of ''The White Rose'' back in 1989 with
Inge Scholl
Inge Aicher-Scholl (11 August 1917 – 4 September 1998), born in present-day Crailsheim, Germany, was the daughter of Robert Scholl, mayor of Forchtenberg, and elder sister of Hans and Sophie Scholl, who studied at the University of Munich ...
consulting on the film and production expected to start later in 1991 or in 1992.
Stage productions
In 2013, a professional production of The White Rose took place in Vaughan, Ontario, Canada (part of the Greater Toronto Area) at the Vaughan City Playhouse. Produced by Shadowpath Productions, it was directed by Tanisha Taitt and featured Alex Karolyi as Sophie Scholl.
Broadway production
On January 24, 1991, Bruce Kerner expressed interest in producing a Broadway production of ''The White Rose'' as well.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:White Rose (Play)
American plays
1991 plays
Plays about World War II