The sound of rain falling seems to send a chill through the auditorium as the lights on stage rise to a shadowy blue.  Through the small, single door at the back of the stage, we see four figures emerge into the dim light.  They are quiet,  huddled close together; their faces turn about the room, each person taking in the gloomy surroundings; each one affected  differently, yet still holding to each other; a family.  It is a moment with subtle and simple actions, silent except for the rain, yet even without a word, their fears,  their uncertainly and exhaustion is spoken to our hearts and minds.  Something else also,  and perhaps most of all: as this innocent family  enters the annex from which most of them will never emerge a free person, we sense that they are hunted.

Thus are we drawn into The Milford High School Theatre Company’s masterful  production of   The Diary of Anne Frank.  Under the direction of Megan Weeks, the drama ran March 2nd and 3rd at the Milford High School Center for the Performing Arts in Highland.  The play, produced by special arrangement with Dramatists Play Service Inc.,  is newly adapted by Wendy Kesselman from the original by Francis Goodrich and Albert Hackett, which is based on the true story as told through the words of teenager Anne Frank in her private diary.

The Franks, father Otto (Miles Morris), mother Edith  (Olivia Hubbell),   daughters Margot (Anna Lehrer), and Anne (Lilly Niehaus) the youngest, are a German Jewish family who leave their home  and resettle in Amsterdam after witnessing the  growth of  anti-Semitism in Germany following  Adolf Hitler’s rise to power.

For a while things go well for the Frank family in their new home:   Otto’s friend and business partner Hermann Van Daan (Alex Lane) helps Otto establish his business in Amsterdam, while  the family settles into their new surroundings.  Eventually however, Nazi Germany invades the Netherlands.  The Dutch surrender, and Amsterdam becomes a German occupied city.

Orders come for Margot  to report to a work camp, and the next day the Frank family goes into hiding in the secret annex connected  to Otto Frank’s business facility; there to be joined by Hermann Van Daan, his wife Petronella (Emily Herman), and their teenage son Peter (Zach Russell).

Assisting the Franks in their flight, and providing their only direct contact with the outside world are Miep Gies (Hailey Eriksen) and Mr. Kraler (Jonah Bellore).

Shortly, Miep and Mr. Kraler present the Franks and Van Daans with the case of another Jewish man, desperate to escape the Nazi’s.  The families agree to accept him into the annex, even though food is scarce and sleeping arrangements are crowded, and so dentist Alfred Dussel (Tyler Capra) soon joins the annex household.

The technical contributions of the student crew were on display immediately.  They  put in long hours along with the members of the cast, and they deserve recognition for the outstanding production to which they contributed their talent and their time.  These students are:  Lead Stage Managers  Faith Weickel and Allysa Decato,  Stage Crew Alexa Cheaney, Student Technical Director Jeremy Hogaboom, Spotlight and Tech. Assistant Zach Damon, Costuming Assistants Maria Weickel and Sam Chmiel, Seamstress Sam Chmiel , who sewed on all of the stars and also helped with make-up, Historian and exhibit creator Tessa Biondo, Hair Stylist Ava Beck, Scenic Painter Rhia Sibson.

As added preparation, and to ensure her students understood the significance of their undertaking,  director Megan Weeks took the members of the production on a tour of the Holocaust Memorial Center in Farmington Hills. (https://www.holocaustcenter.org/about) and with the coordination of Harriet and Richard Cooper, hosted a luncheon for the students with Holocaust survivors Paula Marx-Bolton, Erna Gorman, and Micheal Weiss.  Hearing first hand accounts of the Holocaust, and getting to spend time with individual survivors made a deep impression on the students.  As one cast member said to his parents before an evening show.  “The pressure is really on tonight,  Paula    (survivor Paula Marx-Bolton,) is going to be there.”  The students wanted to give a portrayal that was worthy of the memory of all those who perished, and to give their best for one who had survived the horror.

Besides her cast and student crew, Weeks was assisted in the production by Acting coach Michelle White, Technical Director Sarah Martin, Costume Manager Melinda Mihail, Seamstress Norma Chmiel, voice over artists Rich Kynast and Michael Last, Executive Assistant to Ms. Weeks, Megan’s own “Mama” Nancy Weeks, and a host of other grandparent and parent volunteers and coordinators.

The Diary of Anne Frank was photographed by Tara Johnson Photography.  All photos included within this work are by Tara Johnson.  These excellent images and many more may be viewed and purchased at www.tarajohnsonphotography.com

 

The story moves on, told largely through Anne’s eyes in wonderfully acted narrative sequences performed by Lilly Niehaus.  Lilly beautifully captures the youth, charm, optimism, and occasional irritability of young Anne.  To Anne, the move to the annex first seems like a “romantic adventure,” and thanks to Lilly’s captivating portrayal, the audience is able to forget for a while the tragedy that  looms, and  to enjoy the warm family fellowship, identify with the mundane tensions that surfaced along the way, and even  laugh along with the occasional moments of humor.

While telling  us the events that happened, Anne’s diary also reveals much about Anne herself,  Her awareness and response to the changes happening as she matures toward womanhood, her fears, her sense of guilt that she was still alive, when so many others had perished, even her own candid admission of her emotional detachment from her mother; all these written thoughts are lifted from the page and translated with charm and grace into spoken word  by Lilly.

 

Besides being a  story teller, Anne Frank is also a character in this story.  There are many instances when Lilly Niehaus, in character as Anne the story-teller, is speaking to the audience, invisible and inaudible to the other characters on stage.  Then, whenever  it’s time to join the scene, Lilly switches from  Anne the story-teller to Anne the character, and picks up her dialogue and action with the other performers.  Lilly does this flawlessly throughout the show, never missing a beat.

Milford Theatre goers should be familiar with Jonah Bellore.  He has been delighting audiences with his comic antics in such zany roles as Barnaby Tucker in Hello Dolly,  Mr. DePinna  in You Can’t Take it With You  and of course  Bud Frump in  How to Succeed in Business… Jonah is definitely up to the task of toning down his considerable stage  persona to portray the  decidedly unzany  Mr. Kraler.  Jonah’s voice, always clear and articulate, and  typically lively in his previous roles,  maintains the first two qualities, but  for this role he eschews liveliness to take on a still, almost hushed vocal delivery,  as though  beside the sick-bed of a loved one, or wishing to speak something with great reverence.  This seemingly minor alteration contributes to the  glow of goodness about the Frank family. Through Jonah’s portrayal, the audience can hear and believe that Mr. Kraler has deep respect and admiration for Otto Frank and his family.  This production of Anne Frank  certainly benefited from an actor  of  Jonah’s  experience and skill performing the role of Mr.  Kraler.

Another talented performer from whom audiences have witnessed great things is Hailey Eriksen.  Besides enduring a stay with The Addams Family as Alice Beineke,  and keeping her chin up as Russian Grand Duchess in exile Olga Katrina in You Can’t Take it With You, Hailey was most recently seen making us  laugh as Irene Molloy in Hello Dolly where,  as if her seemingly effortless comedic touch were not enough, Hailey also dazzled us with her beautiful rendition of “Ribbons Down My Back.”  In the role of  Miep Gies, Hailey neither gets to make us laugh nor delight us with her singing , but she does get to give us an excellent  portrayal of courage, empathy, loyalty and steadfastness; again much to the benefit of this production.  The early sequence between Hailey as Miep Gies, and Olivia Hubbell as Edith Frank is a powerful, wonderfully acted moment.  The contrasting and deeply expressed emotions evident on each actresses face, and their whole positioning with each other,  presents a stunning photographic study, as seen in the image below.

Hermann “Putti” Van Daan  is the source of much of the tension between the characters confined to the annex.  He is sometimes impatient and overbearing, and  does not conceal his displeasure with his son Peter. He is even caught by Mrs Frank pilfering bread from the groups meagre supply.   Despite his flaws,  the actor who portrays Hermann Van Daan still must make him like-able , for  Mr. Van Daan is no villain; he has proven himself as a trusted friend to the Frank family, and is fiercely devoted to his wife.  Milford audiences will recall how  Alex Lane excelled at making the gruff and initially greedy  Horace Vandergelder like-able in Hello Dolly, so it is no surprise that Alex takes on this challenge with a convincing performance, one  that  captures the complex nature of Mr. Van Daan with intensity and controlled vigor.  Such is Alex’s portrayal that  at times it seems one can actually feel, as well as see, his potent facial expressions; yet in quieter moments Alex can perform a simple action like enjoying the smell of the cigarette Anne made for him with a natural ease that makes us believe he is delighting in the aroma.  Alex is also able to portray tremendous vulnerability and tenderness of character such as seen in the  sequence captured in the second photo below.

The character of Petronella Van Daan is another challenge.  Mrs.  Van Daan is a devoted wife and mother.  She is possessed of good cheer, and takes on most of the cooking duties without  complaint.  She has a  sense of humor about herself, demonstrated when she produces a chamber pot out of a hat box  while declaring, “A place just doesn’t feel like home without it.”  Yet Mrs Van Daan is also a  flirt, to the point of making Edith and Otto Frank uncomfortable,  and despite her devotion to her husband, she can not help making disparaging remarks about him to the others; her character is also written to display a  marked degree of materialism, a trait not demonstrated in any of the other characters. Like the character of her husband, that of Petronella Van Daan  must  generate tension between the others, while still remaining like-able.  A performer of exceptional skill and range is required to portray such a character effectively.  Last seen  in the title role of Dolly Gallagher-Levi   leading us on a merry, song and dance filled romp  in Hello Dolly,  Emily Herman is just such a performer.  As Petronella Van Daan,  Emily is able to make the audience alternately laugh or cringe, sympathize with, or silently criticize,  her behavior.  She has moments of intense emotional display, and also moments of frivolity.  Emily can engage in fierce dialogue,  or, like Billie Burke in a classic screwball comedy film,  flit about the stage spouting  bits of nonsense.  Her performance seems to flow effortlessly through the various demands of her character; yet another indicator of the great talent possessed by Emily Herman .

 

Alfred Dussel is the last character to join the fugitives in the secret annex, and again his is a complex role.  A dentist by profession, Mr. Dussel is deeply religious, and devoted to his beloved Charlotte, from whom he was forced to separate, and whom he longs to see again.  He is also sensitive about the fear many people have  of visiting the dentist, and he is possessed of a quirky sense of humor that often has him explaining “That was a joke.” ; also, he is highly allergic to cats, a potential problem,as Peter Van Daan has brought his cat to the annex. The role of Mr. Dussel is endearingly  portrayed by Tyler Capra, to whom audiences had already  been endeared  by his portrayal of hopeful bride-groom Ambrose Kemper in Hello Dolly, and xylophone playing Ed Carmichael in You Can’t Take it With You.  Through Mr. Dussels’s  perturbances with Anne’s nightmares, his often unappreciated attempts at humor, and his peeves (“I hate cats!  They give me asthma!”)  Tyler  gives us a like-able and earnest,  yet somewhat awkward man who truly tries to bring comfort and laughter to those around him.

Margot Frank is Anne’s older sister.  Compared to “Quicksilver Anne”, Margot is quiet and reflective.  She embodies mature qualities at a young age, and she excels in her studies, both attributes which Anne is shown to resent for a  time during the play.  No longer an adolescent, and more serious by nature, Margot does not find anything adventurous or romantic about the move to the annex.  She is immediately shown to be deeply  affected by the events taking place.  The role of Margot Frank is played by Anna Lehrer.  Anna has the challenge of portraying a quiet character who is intense but does not demand attention, and who is serious and with high standards, but who also stays out of the  conflicts that surround some of the other characters, and this she does exceptionally well.  The facial expressions  and physical actions which Anna displays are intense and clearly convey the fear that is so deeply affecting her character.  Despite her obvious emotional distress, Margot does not allow this to influence how she treats the others. One of the important exchanges that takes place between the sisters is that in which Margot, the quiet one, defends herself against her sister’s  charges.    Anna Lehrer delivers Margot’s rebuttal’s  calmly,  and with heightened, but controlled emotion.  “I’m not perfect…”, or “He doesn’t walk all over me…” She is not going to back down, but she is not going to start screaming either.  Quiet, but firm.  Passionate, but controlled: a difficult and delicate balance  crafted with insight and quality of execution  by Anna Lehrer.

Peter Van Daan is  the teenage son of Mr. and Mrs. Van Daan.  He starts the play interested mostly in his cat, and decidedly not interested in Anne’s attempts to get him to dance and to engage in horse play, as when she teases him by stealing his shoes.  Like Anne however, Peter also matures over the course of the play, and we soon see the two tentatively embarking on a romance.  Zach Russell gives an excellent portrayal of Peter Van Daan.  Zach does awkward when Peter is awkward, he does charming when Peter is charming, and he also does awkwardly charming, or charmingly awkward, as the case may be.  Of course Zach doesn’t merely “do” these attributes, he does them well, he does them convincingly and he does them throughout his performance in some of the plays most charming and hopeful scenes.    Zach’s timing when he trips over the bed  after he tells Anne he thinks she is pretty is impeccable.  Zach and Lily  have a  delightful  on-stage chemistry, something audiences will remember from  their success as Anthony Kirby Jr. and Alice Sycamore in You Can’t Take it With You.  

Edith Frank, wife of Otto, mother of Margot and Anne is already emotionally exhausted and near the breaking point when the play opens.  Through Edith is expressed the fear that many of us experience as we face difficult times in life.  Hers is a relentless character to portray, one that allows the performer little opportunity to come up into the light, but demands  they stay down in the dark, where doubt and hopelessness dwell.  Such a character demands a performer of strength, of sensitivity, and of endurance, to remain for most of the performance in a role with almost no bright spots, where almost every emotion she was called upon to display, were it to be  expressed in mathematical terms, would be less than zero.  Such a performer is Olivia Hubbell in the role of Edith Frank.  Olivia’s facial expressions are haunting, her wide and terrified eyes seem to sense some as yet unseen horror.  Her voice as she expresses her fears that all is hopeless is desperate, frightening, and ragged with emotion. Olivia’s portrayal of Edith’s violent rage when she finds Mr. Van Daan stealing bread is explosive, dynamic, and frighteningly convincing.   Even her own daughter Anne rejects her early in the play, putting even more strain on Edith while  providing more opportunity for the audience to witness the strength of Olivia’s portrayal.  The times Olivia does get to display a smile or to appear relaxed are like gentle breezes scented with flowers amid the vicious winds that torment her character.

Otto Frank: husband, father, successful man of business, liked by his associates and friends, loved by his family, and respected by all.  Despite all this, Otto is  humble; a patient and listening leader, who sees the worth in all around him, and who is not afraid to express admiration  and gratitude to those who look up to him.   The role of Otto Frank is performed by Miles Morris, and like every member of the cast, Miles gives an excellent portrayal of a challenging and complex character.  As Otto, Miles  maintains a deliberate calm throughout most of the play.  He is seen at various times  reassuring others, or looking up from his reading to monitor the tense moments that flared up between characters, wisely weighing whether to intervene, or to let events play out.  Yet when danger threatened, Otto was decisive, and quick to act to protect his family, such as the night  loud noises erupted from the work space below, it was Otto who rushed out through the door to find the cause.     Through Miles’  portrayal of Otto Frank, we see  the complex nature of a figure in authority who is not authoritarian, a leader who listens more than he speaks, and a man who has earned the respect of all around him but who doesn’t need to keep proving  it.  He is a man  burdened with the care of those around him, but above all who loves and cares  deeply for his family and all humanity (“If we can save even  one life, we must try” as he urges the others to allow Mr. Dussel to share their secret hiding place).

 

Near the end of the second act  Miep Gies hurriedly enters the secret annex.  She is flush with excitement.  At first there is trepidation.  Is it bad news?  No, not bad news, the invasion!  The invasion?  Yes,  the invasion!  For the first time  in the play hope dawns, suddenly and over everyone.  Miep has brought a map, and on it they trace out the Allied advance, city by city, until it will reach–Amsterdam!  They turn on the radio so thoughtfully provided them by Mr. Kraler, and the voice of General Eisenhower announces that Allied troops have landed on the beaches of Normandy, and proclaims that the liberation of Europe has begun!  Liberation!  We too are carried away with the elation of the moment, yearning for the tragic end to be averted, silently urging the Allied armies to advance in time.

 

After this is a calm sequence.  Everyone, even Edith Frank seems relaxed.  The characters display a  sense of hope that we have not seen before.  They are enjoying fresh berries and are relishing the imminent prospect of the end of the war, and freedom from being hunted.  Freedom to return to their normal lives.

Suddenly the stage goes dark.  We hear the effects of troopers storming the house.  Shouting;  the  crashing  of a door being broken down.  On stage, a scream.  More effects of men shouting, sounds of confusion, struggle. Capture.  From out of the darkness we hear Lilly’s voice give out a piteous, terrified scream;  “Pim!”  (Anne’s nickname for her father.)  Then, silence.

The darkness continues.  Some in the audience begin to stir. Is this the end?  No, not the end.    The stage lights come up dimly, but enough to reveal the annex, devoid of human life. Through the small single door at the back of the stage enters a solitary figure.  Otto Frank.

At this moment some kind of energy, or an aura seems to charge the very atmosphere of the auditorium, as if everyone  is suddenly filled up with the same compelling awareness.  Something momentous is unfolding onstage.  Something terrible, something filled with unbearable pain,  something everyone  dreads, yet which no one can resist.  Even before he speaks, his body emanates grief: his posture, the tilt of his head, the position of his arms and hands.  His hands.  We watch as he reaches out, his fingers  tenderly playing over an object, or a piece of furniture, each one connected to  a person he once knew…a person now gone, forever.

 

Already the audience is grieving with Otto Frank.  Not a word has been spoken.

To say that The Monologue belongs to Miles Morris would be an incomplete statement.  It also belongs to every member of the cast, to every member of the crew, to the authors, to Megan Weeks, Michelle White,  Melinda Mihail, and Sarah Martin, to Holocaust survivors Paula Marx-Bolton, Erna Gorman, and Micheal Weiss,  to Harriet and Richard Cooper, to many  grandparents and parents who volunteered to make this production. It belongs to the millions who perished, and the millions more who survived, but suffered. It belongs to every one of them because they brought The Diary of Anne Frank to this moment.

This moment  is for one performer to deliver.   Alone, glowing in the dim blue twilight,  the performer is on the stage.  Suffering issues from his whole person.   Miles Morris delivers the moment.  His voice, deep and clear,  is  filled with terror at each awful word  it speaks.  In sentences choked  with anguish, Miles tells of their betrayal by an unknown informant, the detention, the railroad journey in a cattle car, the separations… then, one by one, the deaths; his friends, Hermann and Petronella Van Daan, Peter Van Daan, Mr Dussel…Edith…Margot… Anne.  It is soul- shattering, heart-breaking.  The house is in tears. Miles cradles one of Anne’s shoes, his face tortured with pain.  He discovers Anne’s diary and reads aloud her words “Despite everything that has happened, I still believe people are good at heart.”  Protectively grasping her diary, like a delicate living thing,  Miles moves back to the door.  He takes the scarf Anne had made for him, lovingly caresses it to his cheek, then gently wraps it around his neck. With a final grief-stricken look at the annex and the memories, he turns and disappears.

Strong, silent men are grateful for the darkness to hide their tears.  Other men and women, less silent, struggle to control their sobbing, while some young women do not struggle, but burst into open weeping and continue to do so for thirty minutes.  They have not merely watched a play; they have experienced something sublime.

From beginning to end, The Milford High School Theatre Company’s production of The Diary of Anne Frank  is an amazing performance.

To every member of the cast and crew, to Megan Weeks, to every person who gave their talent and their time and their energy to this production:  Well Done.  Not as an afterword, but as a final word, Thank You.

 

Although the Franks were  born in Germany, and Otto had fought  in the First World War, this record of life long citizenship and loyal service offered the Franks no protection from the Nazi regime.    During World War One, Jews like Otto Frank not only fought for their country as loyal Germans, but their valor was recognized by the Prussian/German military establishment. 

 The Ordern Pour le Merite, commonly referred to as the  “Blue Max” was Germany’s highest award for bravery in the face of the enemy.   Recipients of the Blue Max became national heroes,  and were widely celebrated .   Jewish aviator Wilhelm Frankl  volunteered for duty in the German Air Service at the outbreak of World War One, and on August 12, 1916,  Frankl became just the ninth airman to earn the prestigious  Pour le Merite.  To highlight the significance of this achievement, Wilhelm Frankl earned the Blue Max  five months before the war’s most famous ace , Manfred von Richtofen, the legendary “Red Baron,” was accorded the same honor. ¹

Following his death in action in April 1917, Wilhelm Frankl, having earned the highest honor for bravery which his nation could bestow, was  given a funeral with military honors, complete with German officers and soldiers, carrying  floral wreaths , trailing his hearse.  Graveside, these German  soldiers can be seen standing at attention and saluting as Frankl’s casket is lowered into the earth.¹ 

¹ (Bronnenkant, The Blue Max Airmen, Volumes 1 and 3, Aeronaut Books)

Anne Frank, having committed no crime, spent the last two and a half years of her life as a fugitive from the government of her native country.  She died in captivity, under brutal and inhumane conditions. She was buried in a mass grave.

Only fifteen years separate the end of the German regime that could and did bestow the highest of honors upon the descendants of Abraham,  and the rise of the German regime capable of systematically and deliberately treating them with the lowest of  inhuman cruelty and contempt, even to the point of attempting to exterminate them. 

Fifteen years is less time than Anne Frank lived.

Fifteen years is less time than  any of the daughters and sons , granddaughters and  grandsons who gave this performance of The Diary of Anne Frank have so far lived.

Fifteen years is a very short time.

Today is one day.

 

Copyright 2018 r.k.morris