No matter how many times you see The Diary of Anne Frank, you cannot help but be moved by the story and the renewed realization that such horrors as the Holocaust actually took place in a civilized world. Perhaps even more horrifying is the notion that some people insist the Holocaust never happened, that it is merely a fabrication by the Jewish-controlled media and political reactionaries attempting to foist an untruth upon the world.
How important then is this play - now onstage at Nashville Children's Theatre in a stunning production helmed by NCT producing director Scot Copeland - designed for younger audiences? Frankly, its impact is immeasurable, but it most certainly presents the story of young diarist Anne Frank in such a way that younger audiences should never be able to forget the Holocaust, nor should they ever question the reality of those dark days in the human experience.
The story is rendered even more timely, and even more heartbreaking, by the January 11 death of Miep Gies, the brave Dutch woman who was one of the Frank family's protectors during their more than two years of hiding in the "secret annex" of the company building owned by Frank. Throughout her life, Gies kept the Anne Frank story alive through her many works and efforts and her loss must have affected this company beyond measure as they were in the final days of rehearsals before the show's opening.
The timing and the impact of Gies' death makes Copeland's interpretation of the time-honored work by Frances Goodrich and Albert Hackett even more astoundingly heart-rending and moving. The Diary of Anne Frank is brought vividly to life by the superbly talented cast of actors, not the least of whom is Tia Shearer in the titular role. Shearer perfectly embodies the adolescent Anne, yearning for the freedom and adulthood that she would never know. Her very accessibility helps to make the story even more palatable for younger audience members who may see themselves in the character of Anne, thus driving home more effectively the lessons taught by the play.
Bobby Wyckoff, cast as Otto Frank, gives a stunningly genuine reading of his part, capturing a father's anguish as he is forced to hide his family from certain deportation to the concentration camps, and then displaying the resignation of a camp survivor forced to face the loss of everyone he's loved. Wyckoff's stellar performance is one deserving of countless ovations.
Shearer and Wyckoff are admirably supported by some of Nashville's finest actors, including the beloved Rona Carter as Edith Frank; Jamie Farmer-Oneida as Margot; Henry Haggard as Dr. Dussel, Peter Vann as Peter Van Daan; Holly Wooten as Petronella Van Daan; and Evelyn Blythe as Miep Gies. Samuel Whited, as Hermann Van Daan, deserves special praise for his impeccable performance as the flawed and greedy man forced to accept his undeserving fate.
As expected, The Diary of Anne Frank is given a typcially top-flight production by the accomplished artists, technicians and designers at Nashville Children's Theatre, who prove with each new vehicle that they set the standards by which all other members of Nashville's creative and theatre communities are measured. Patricia Taber's costumes, Erica Edmonson's scenic designs, Dan Brewer's sound design and Scott Leather's lighting design are all ideally created for the play: the time and place created by these physical trappings make the storytelling come to life onstage in ever more challenging and provocative ways.
- The Diary of Anne Frank. By Frances Goodrich and Albert Hackett. Directed by Scot Copeland. At Nashville Children's Theatre, through February 7. For more information, visit the company website at www.nashvillechildrenstheatre.org.
Tia Shearer as Anne Frank, photographed by Dan Brewer
