In the first part of this special two-part episode, Sam and Alex look at a vibrant part of Jewish culture that was nearly lost during the Holocaust: the drut’syla storytelling tradition.

Special guest Shonaleigh Cumbers, believed to be the last living drut’syla, talks to the girls about the tradition and her life and experiences as a storyteller. She also offers some insights into her incredible story The Fool of the Warsaw Ghetto, a beautiful and bittersweet story about three children who, in the final roundup after the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising, encounter a man who offers them what could be another chance at life. Dare they trust the man with a coat like beggar’s velvet?

Don’t forget to rate, review, comment and subscribe!

Hosts: Samantha Mitschke & Alexandra Gellner

Guest: Shonaleigh Cumbers

Executive Producer: Samantha Mitschke

Producer / Editor: Alexandra Gellner

Music: “Image” by Infraction Music

Contact: https://holocaustonstage.com/contact/

Episode Sources

Books & Articles

The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum (USHMM), Holocaust Encyclopedia: Warsaw.

The Wiener Holocaust Library, The Holocaust Explained: Case Study: Warsaw Ghetto.

Other sources

To learn more about Shonaleigh and her tellings, courses and events, please visit https://shonaleigh.uk.

For more information about Twilight Tales and to join the online tellings, please visit https://www.facebook.com/groups/twilighttales.

A published collection of some of Shonaleigh’s stories, A Garment for the Moon, is forthcoming from Orkneyology Press.

Wilkommen, bienvenue, welcome…the girls are back! In the season premiere, Sam and Alex look at the iconic musical Cabaret and ask: Is it a ‘Holocaust play’?

The conversation includes their encounters with it, from childhood memories up to recent performances in London and New York; key differences between the film and the stage version(s); the depictions of characters from Clifford and Sally to Herr Schultz and Frau Schneider, and what they represent; and what Cabaret itself represents in the current global political climate.

Hosts: Samantha Mitschke & Alexandra Gellner

Executive Producer: Samantha Mitschke

Producer / Editor: Alexandra Gellner

Music: “Image” by Infraction Music

Contact: https://holocaustonstage.com/contact/

Episode Sources

Books & Articles

Joel Grey, “I Starred In ‘Cabaret.’ We Need to Heed Its Warning” in The New York Times, 24 November 2024.

Plays

Joe Masteroff (book), John Kander (music) and Fred Ebb (lyrics) (1966/1987) Cabaret.

Other sources

You can find all three education packs by Susie Ferguson for the London production here: https://kitkat.club/education/.

In this week’s episode, Sam and Alex look at Arthur Miller’s adaptation of Fania Fénelon’s memoir of her time in the women’s orchestra of Auschwitz.

The pair talk about the history of the orchestras at Auschwitz, including the relative ‘privilege’ of the musicians; the life and experiences of Fénelon, a French singer and pianist; the moral challenges facing the orchestra members; the representation of women’s experiences; and the complex, overarching theme of perpetrators as ‘humans’ rather than ‘monsters.’

To skip updates and recommendations and go straight into the episode, listen from 15.15.

Hosts: Samantha Mitschke & Alexandra Gellner

Executive Producer: Samantha Mitschke

Producer / Editor: Alexandra Gellner

Music: “Image” by Infraction Music

Contact: https://holocaustonstage.com/contact/

Episode Sources

Tim Auld, “How Arthur Miller struck a discord with the Women's Orchestra of Auschwitz” in The Guardian, 6 March 2015.

Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum, On Auschwitz (25): Orchestras at Auschwitz.

BBC Media Centre, The Last Musician of Auschwitz.

Fania Fénelon (1977) The Musicians of Auschwitz. Michael Joseph Ltd.

Kathryn Hughes, “The Women’s Orchestra of Auschwitz by Anne Sebba review – playing for their lives” in The Guardian, 21 March 2025.

Arthur Miller (1990) Playing for Time. Nick Hern Books.

Music and the Holocaust / ORT.org: Fania Fénelon / Anita Lasker-Wallfish / Alma Rosé

Time Note, Maria Mandel.

To request a full list of resources, please use the contact form.

Content warning: this episode contains references to disordered eating.

In this week’s episode, Alex and Dr Sam talk to Professor Lisa Peschel - whose interviews with Czech survivors of Terezin/Theresienstadt led to the discovery of numerous scripts, previously thought lost, of the performances staged inside the ghetto. This led to the publication in German, Czech and English of Performing Captivity, Performing Escape, a collection of 12 of these scripts.

The trio discuss elements including the historical background of Terezin/Theresienstadt; the cultural life in the ghetto; Lisa’s interviews; her experiences of working with the plays, including reactions from students; and the potential highlights and challenges for educators. Lisa gives a reading of the book’s epilogue, the satirical yet poignant New Year’s Eve in the Oederan Slave-Labor Camp. Overall, the discussion considers how the plays allow students and teachers to gain an insight into the lives and experiences of the people who created and performed them.

Some sound issues were experienced during recording - thank you for bearing with us!

Hosts: Samantha Mitschke & Alexandra Gellner

Guest: Lisa Peschel

Executive Producer: Samantha Mitschke

Producer / Editor: Alexandra Gellner

Music: “⁠Image⁠” by ⁠Infraction Music⁠

Contact: ⁠https://holocaustonstage.com/contact/⁠

Plays

Lisa Peschel (ed.) (2014) ⁠Performing Captivity, Performing Escape: Cabarets and Plays from the Terezín/Theresienstadt Ghetto⁠. Seagull Books.

Other sources

Visit the ⁠Performing the Jewish Archive⁠ website to explore a vast range of material, including a video recording of The Smoke of Home.

To learn more about Lisa and her work, please visit the ⁠University of York website⁠.

To request a full list of resources for this episode, please use this form.

In this week’s episode, Dr Sam and guest co-host John Summers-Campbell explore the most naturalistic of Brecht’s works: a series of 24 episodic scenes that illustrate what life was like for ordinary Germans under the Nazis in the build-up to the Second World War.

Sam and John discuss aspects such as the (under)representation of different groups; which of the scenes they think are the most powerful, and why; John’s experiences of directing the play, including a tap-dancing schoolgirl, a maid in drag and a fainting Nazi; how Fear and Misery… inspired a 1980s sci-fi series; and how the play is, once again, hauntingly timely.

Hosts: Samantha Mitschke & John Summers-Campbell

Executive Producer: Samantha Mitschke

Producer / Editor: Alexandra Gellner

Music: “⁠Image⁠” by ⁠Infraction Music⁠

Contact: ⁠https://holocaustonstage.com/contact/⁠

Books & Articles

The Poetry Foundation, “Bertolt Brecht”: ⁠https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/bertolt-brecht⁠

Plays

Bertolt Brecht; John Willett (trans.) (2006) ⁠Fear and Misery of the Third Reich⁠. Methuen Drama.

Unfortunately Leopoldstadt is no longer available on National Theatre at Home (we checked), but you can watch the National Theatre trailer ⁠here⁠ and find copies of the text ⁠here⁠.

To request a full list of sources for this episode, please use this form.

Content warning: Discussions of sexual violence and graphic descriptions of antisemitic violence and killings.

In this episode - the first in the Contested Histories series - Sam and Alex explore Our Class by Tadeusz Słobodzianek, translated/adapted by Ryan Craig. Based on the controversial history of the Jedwabne pogrom, in which the Jews of the town were murdered in July 1941 by their Polish Catholic neighbours, the play looks at the stories of victims, perpetrators and survivors. The real life events on which the play is based challenged the image of Poles as solely victims in World War II, and debates continue to this day.

Sam and Alex discuss aspects including the history and investigation of the massacre; ‘responsible’ stage portrayals of violent acts; and the resonance of Our Class in the current moment - all in a play where the name ‘Jedwabne’ is never actually spoken.

Hosts: Samantha Mitschke & Alexandra Gellner

Executive Producer: Samantha Mitschke

Producer / Editor: Alexandra Gellner

Music: “⁠Image⁠” by ⁠Infraction Music⁠

Contact: ⁠https://holocaustonstage.com/contact/⁠

Books & Articles

The Contested Histories Initiative, “Jedwabne Pogrom Memorial in Poland”, Contested Histories Case Study #125 (June 2021).

Museum of the History of Polish Jews (POLIN), ⁠The anniversary of the Jedwabne massacre and ⁠Timeline of pogroms in the former Soviet occupation zone – summer of 1941.⁠

Plays

Tadeusz Słobodzianek; Ryan Craig (trans.) (2009) ⁠Our Class⁠. Oberon Modern Plays.

To request a full list of resources for this episode, please use this form.

Since its publication in 2006, John Boyne’s novel has been the subject of criticism in the world of Holocaust education. Set at Auschwitz and telling the fictional story of a friendship between the naive son of a Nazi officer and a Jewish boy imprisoned in the camp, the book continues to split opinion - with some saying it shouldn’t be utilised at all, and others pointing out its value as a tool for teaching critical thinking.

In this episode, Sam and Alex set out to discuss Angus Jackson’s 2015 adaptation and end up covering the play, the book (and its sequel), the film, and the ballet…with their conclusions even surprising themselves.

Hosts: Samantha Mitschke & Alexandra Gellner

Executive Producer: Samantha Mitschke

Producer / Editor: Alexandra Gellner

Music: “⁠Image⁠” by ⁠Infraction Music⁠

Contact: ⁠https://holocaustonstage.com/contact/⁠

Books & Articles

John Boyne (2006) ⁠The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas⁠. David Fickling Books.

UCL Centre for Holocaust Education, Continuity and Change Research Study, ⁠Third data release: “The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas” in English Secondary Schools⁠ (accessed 06/04/2025)

Plays

Angus Jackson (2015) ⁠The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas⁠. Nick Hern Books.

To request a full list of resources for this episode, please use this form.

CONTENT WARNING: This episode contains references to violence and a mention of SA against children.

“January 1941. A terrible crime is taking place in a clinic for disabled children. The perpetrators argue that it will help struggling parents and lift the financial burden on the mighty German state. One brave voice is raised in objection. But will the doctor listen?”

In this episode, Sam and Alex welcome their very first guest to the show. Director, writer and teacher Stephen Unwin talks about his play All Our Children; his experiences as the father of a disabled son; his work in disability rights and activism; Aktion T4, the Nazi campaign to ‘euthanise’ all those with physical and mental disabilities; and the play’s terrible relevance today.

Hosts: Samantha Mitschke & Alexandra Gellner

Guest: Stephen Unwin

Executive Producer: Samantha Mitschke

Producer / Editor: Alexandra Gellner

Music: “⁠Image⁠” by ⁠Infraction Music⁠

Contact: ⁠https://holocaustonstage.com/contact/⁠

Books & Articles

Michael Burleigh (1995/2002) ⁠Death and Deliverance: ‘Euthanasia’ in Germany 1900-1945⁠. Cambridge University Press/Pan Books.

Dagmar Herzog (2024) ⁠The Question of Unworthy Life: Eugenics and Germany’s Twentieth Century⁠. Princeton University Press.

Sara Ryan (2017) ⁠Justice for Laughing Boy: Connor Sparrowhawk - A Death by Indifference⁠. Jessica Kingsley Publishers.

Plays

Stephen Unwin (2017) ⁠All Our Children⁠. Nick Hern Books.

Stephen Unwin (2024) ⁠Laughing Boy⁠. Nick Hern Books.

Other sources

The film Stephen highly recommends is ⁠Korczak (1990), written by Agnieszka Holland and directed by Andrzej Wajda.

For more information and to contact Stephen: ⁠https://www.stephenunwin.uk/⁠

You can learn more about Aktion T4 from ⁠Gedenkstätte Hadamar⁠ and in the ⁠Holocaust Encyclopedia⁠ of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum (USHMM).

Content warning: References to suicide and SA against women and children.

In this episode - the first in the Impossible Choices series - Sam and Alex explore Dmitry Glukhovsky’s The White Factory. Beginning in 1960s New York, the play follows survivor Yosef Kaufmann as he learns a notorious SS officer has finally been apprehended. Forced to confront his own experiences in the Łódź Ghetto, Yosef once again finds himself caught between seemingly impossible choices.

Sam and Alex discuss themes such as the history of the Ghetto, including the controversial figure of Chaim Rumkowski; and how The White Factory emphasises Jewish history and culture, vitally demonstrating the humanity that the Nazis tried to annihilate.

This episode is dedicated to the memory of Adrian Schiller.

Hosts: Samantha Mitschke & Alexandra Gellner

Executive Producer: Samantha Mitschke

Producer / Editor: Alexandra Gellner

Music: “⁠Image⁠” by ⁠Infraction Music⁠

Contact: ⁠https://holocaustonstage.com/contact/⁠

Episode Sources

Books & Articles

Marc Tracy, “The Holocaust’s Grandchildren Are Speaking Now” in The New York Times, 20 October 2024: ⁠https://www.nytimes.com/2024/10/20/arts/real-pain-eisenberg-holocaust-third-generation.html⁠

Plays

The Merchant of Venice 1936 (2025 UK tour): ⁠https://merchantofvenice1936.co.uk/⁠

The White Factory at the Marylebone Theatre, London (2023): ⁠https://www.marylebonetheatre.com/productions/the-white-factory⁠

In their very first episode, Sam and Alex explore stage adaptations of Anne Frank’s diary - including one man’s obsession with telling Anne’s story; how most people don’t realise how a single play has impacted their perception of the Diary; ideas on how working with a stage adaptation can help students engage in different ways; and how Sam bumped into Otto Frank in Amsterdam…

Hosts: Samantha Mitschke & Alexandra Gellner

Executive Producer: Samantha Mitschke

Producer / Editor: Alexandra Gellner

Music: “⁠Image⁠” by ⁠Infraction Music⁠

Contact: ⁠https://holocaustonstage.com/contact/⁠

Episode Sources

Books & Articles

Amy Coplan and Peter Goldie (ed.) (2011) Empathy: Philosophical and Psychological Perspectives. Oxford University Press.

Anne Frank; Otto H. Frank, & Mirjam Pressler (ed.); Susan Massotty (trans.) (2002) Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl, 60th Anniversary edition. Puffin Books.

David L. Goodrich (2001) The Real Nick and Nora: Frances Goodrich and Albert Hackett, Writers of Stage and Screen Classics. Southern Illinois University Press.

Graver, Laurence (1995) An Obsession with Anne Frank: Meyer Levin and theDiary. University of California Press.

Edward R. Isser (1997) Stages of Annihilation: Theatrical Representations of the Holocaust. Associated University Presses.

George Lakoff and Mark Johnson (1999) Philosophy in the Flesh: The Embodied Mind and Its Challenge to Western Thought. Basic Books.

Carol Ann Lee (1999) Roses from the Earth: The Biography of Anne Frank. BCA.

Carol Ann Lee (2002) The Hidden Life of Otto Frank. Penguin Books.

Meyer Levin (1950) In Search. Authors’ Press.

Samantha Mitschke (2018) ‘Have We Found Anne Frank? A Critical Analysis of Theater Amsterdam’s Anne,’ in Kara Reilly (ed.) (2018) Contemporary Approaches to Adaptation in Theatre. Palgrave Macmillan, pp. 143-160.

Claude Schumacher (ed.) (1998) Staging the Holocaust: The Shoah in drama and performance. Cambridge University Press.

Plays

Frances Goodrich and Albert Hackett (1956) The Diary of Anne Frank. Samuel French.

Wendy Kesselman (2000) The Diary of Anne Frank. Dramatists Play Service Inc.

Meyer Levin (1967) Anne Frank: A Play. Private publication.

Other sources

Samantha Mitschke (2015) Empathy Effects: Towards an understanding of empathy in British and American Holocaust theatre. PhD thesis, University of Birmingham.

Theater Amsterdam’s⁠ Anne⁠ (ImagineNation)

Tereska Torres (Undated)The haunted houses of Meyer Levin. Unpublished manuscript.