Kindertransport (play)
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''Kindertransport'' is a play by Diane Samuels, which examines the life, during World War II and afterwards, of a
Kindertransport The ''Kindertransport'' (German for "children's transport") was an organised rescue effort of children (but not their parents) from Nazi-controlled territory that took place during the nine months prior to the outbreak of the Second World ...
child. Though fictitious, it is based upon many real kindertransport stories. The play is published by
Nick Hern Books Nick Hern Books is a London-based independent specialist publisher of plays, theatre books and screenplays. The company was founded by the former Methuen drama editor Nicholas Hern in 1988. History Nick Hern Books was founded in June 1988,Sara ...
.


Synopsis

In November 1938, after nights of violence against Jews across Germany and Austria, the British government introduced a programme called the Kindertransport (children's transport), which gave Jewish children—and only children—safe passage to the UK. Spared the horrors of the death camps, the Jewish "Kinder" were uprooted, separated from their parents and transported to a different culture where they faced, not the unmitigated horror of the death camps, but a very human mixture of kindness, indifference, occasional exploitation, and the selflessness of ordinary people faced with needy children. Eva Schlesinger, daughter of Helga and Werner, is sent away to live with a foster carer in
Manchester, England Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...
, temporarily until her parents find work and move to England too. She lives with Lil, a woman who has two other children (Nora and Margaret) and is married to Jack. Lil allows Eva to smoke when she meets her which shows how Lil is not a proper guardian for Eva at first. Eva and Lil fall out as Eva skips her English lessons to go and ask round rich houses if they will give her parents jobs; Lil thinks this makes her seem desperate. She is unhappy and misses her mother. Eva and Lil both eventually become at peace with one another and get on well; Eva is shown as gradually losing her Jewish roots. One day Helga arrives when Eva is in her late teens and Eva tells Helga that Lil and Jack have adopted her and she has been naturalised as English, and her name is now Evelyn. Helga is offended and upset that Evelyn will not travel to New York with her to stay with family. Helga tells Evelyn her father is dead. They have an argument and Helga leaves, which is then followed by an imaginary vicious, angry argument between Helga and Evelyn in which Evelyn gets out all of her hatred for Helga, and she proclaims that Helga IS the Ratcatcher, a character constantly present in the play. At the same time in the present, Evelyn's daughter Faith is uncovering her mother's secret past and they have an argument, which eventually comes to rest. All of this takes place in the attic of Evelyn's house, which supposedly represents Evelyn's psyche.


Noteworthy productions

''Kindertransport'' was first performed in the UK by the Soho Theatre Company at the
Cockpit Theatre, Marylebone The Cockpit Theatre is a Fringe Theatre, fringe theatre in Marylebone, London. Designed by Edward Mendelsohn and built in 1969–70 by the Inner London Education Authority (ILEA) as a community theatre, it is notable as London's first purpose ...
, in London on 13 April 1993 and in the US at the
Manhattan Theatre Club Manhattan Theatre Club (MTC) is a theatre company located in New York City, affiliated with the League of Resident Theatres. Under the leadership of Artistic Director Lynne Meadow and Executive Producer Barry Grove, Manhattan Theatre Club has g ...
in New York on 26 April 1994. Subsequently the play has been produced in San Francisco with awards, Sweden, Japan, Germany, Austria, Canada and South Africa. It was adapted by the author for a
BBC Radio 4 BBC Radio 4 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC that replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. It broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history from the BBC' ...
production in 1995. It has also been performed in Manchester, where the play is set, at the Opera House. The play enjoyed a season in London's West End, playing at the
Vaudeville Theatre The Vaudeville Theatre is a West End theatre on the Strand in the City of Westminster. As the name suggests, the theatre held mostly vaudeville shows and musical revues in its early days. It opened in 1870 and was rebuilt twice, although each ...
from 9 September to 30 November 1996.


References


External links


Author's page
(archive) * Samuels, Diane. (2009
''Kindertransport''
Nick Hern Books Nick Hern Books is a London-based independent specialist publisher of plays, theatre books and screenplays. The company was founded by the former Methuen drama editor Nicholas Hern in 1988. History Nick Hern Books was founded in June 1988,Sara ...
, London, {{Diane Samuels 1993 plays Jewish theatre Kindertransport Plays about the Holocaust English plays by Diane Samuels