A Resource Guide for Teachers and Parents · 2019-07-05 · DREAMS OF ANNE FRANK was commissioned by the Polka Theatre (a well regarded theatre for young audiences in London) in 1992

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DREAMS OF ANNE FRANK A Resource Guide for Teachers and Parents

SHOWTIMES… JAN UARY 18 – FEBRUARY 2, 2008 FRIDAYS – 7PM, SATURDAYS – 2PM & 7PM SCHOOL PERFS: TUES, WED, THURS @ 9:15 AM & 11:15 AM ABOUT ANNE FRANK…

Annelise Marie Frank (1929-1945) was born in Frankfurt, Germany on June 12, 1929. Anne wanted to be a writer. On Anne’s thirteenth birthday, she received a diary that she named “Kitty.” Shortly after that, her sister, Margot, received a notice saying the she needed to report to work - meaning that she would be deported to a Nazi “work camp.” Fearing for their lives, the Franks decide to go into hiding along with Otto Frank’s (Anne’s father) business partner, Mr. Van Daan, and his family. The two families stayed in the “Secret Annex” (as Anne refers to it) for about two years until they were betrayed and were sent to Westerbork, a Dutch “transitcamp”. Later, Anne and Margot were taken to Bergen-Belson where they died of Typhus. Bergen-Belsen was liberated a month after their deaths. Miep Gies (one of the people who kept the group hidden) found Anne’s diary and gave it to Otto Frank after the war. Otto was the only survivor of the group of eight. Otto Frank published parts of Anne’s diary so that his daughter would be remembered.

INSIDE THE GUIDE…

Introducing the play……….………2

Bringing the play into the classroom………………………………4

Extending the learning………...…5

About the Theatre.………………...6

About the Library……………..…...8

ABOUT THE PLAYWRIGHT: Bernard Kops is an award winning playwright who lives in London, England. He was born in the East End of London of Dutch-Jewish working class parents in 1926. He achieved recognition with his first play, THE HAMLET OF STEPNEY GREEN which was performed all over the world. Since then he has written more than forty plays for stage and radio, nine novels and seven volumes of poetry. His autobiography THE WORLD IS A WEDDING was published throughout the world and has recently been followed by his acclaimed second installment of his autobiography, SHALOM BOMB. Bernard has written twenty eight stage plays including: PLAYING SINATRA, commissioned and presented by the Croydon Warehouse Theatre; WHO SHALL I BE TOMORROW? produced at the Greenwich Theatre; DREAMS OF ANNE FRANK for the Polka Theatre, and since been performed across the world; CALL IN THE NIGHT, commissioned by The West Yorkshire Playhouse, was produced in April 1995; GOLEM, was produced at the Royal National Theatre Studio in 1996. JACOB AND THE GREEN RABBI was performed at the Young Vic in 1997. CAFÉ ZEITGEIST, was commissioned by the Phar Democracy Movement in 1998 and has been performed throughout Eastern Europe. Latest Plays: RIVERCHANGE: THE OPENING: ISAAC BABEL: RETURNING WE HEAR THE LARKS, ROGUES AND VAGABONDS and KNOCKING ON HEAVEN'S DOOR. Three volumes of his plays are available from Oberon Books, and he received a new major award from the Arts Council to write ROGUES AND VAGABONDS, his major work on the birth of Yiddish Theatre.

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A C T I – IN T R O D U C I N G T H E P L A Y

CHARACTERS IN THE PLAY: Anne Frank - a 14 year old Jewish girl living in Amsterdam during World War II Otto Frank - Anne’s father Edith Frank – Anne’s mother Margot Frank –Anne’s older sister Mr. Van Daan – Otto Frank’s business partner Mrs. Van Daan – wife of Mr. Van Daan Peter Van Daan –Mr. & Mrs. Van Daan’s son Mr. Dussell - A dentist who comes to live in the Secret Annex with the two families

ABOUT THE PLAY AND THE PRODUCTION: DREAMS OF ANNE FRANK was commissioned by the Polka Theatre (a well regarded theatre for young audiences in London) in 1992 to commemorate the fiftieth anniversary of Anne Frank going into hiding. Bernard Kops used Anne’s diary to investigate the imagination and dreams of an adolescent girl who wanted so much to be a writer. The playwright believed that it was important to make young people aware that there is still prejudice in the world, and that they have the power to change it for the better. Otto Frank, Anne’s father, in publishing the diary after the war, wanted young people to be able to read her diary to open their eyes to the lessons of the past, but also to the realities of the present. Anne’s diary, and this play about her life, celebrates the spirit of creativity that thrives despite the hatred and the horror that humans continue to expose upon the world. The play focuses on Anne’s imaginary world. She used her writing and her dreams to help herself cope with the reality of the world around her. We hope that our production of the play will serve as a vehicle for more discussion about the Second World War, about prejudice, and about how war affects young people today. As Vicky Ireland, the Artistic Director of the Polka Theatre put it, “DREAMS OF ANNE FRANK is a play of substance which treats its young audience as intelligent and perceptive and talks to them on their own terms.” It is also a very theatrical presentation of the story. Since the play is based so much on Anne’s imagination, the setting is not realistic. The set, with it’s stark wall full of doors and a ladder that lead nowhere, serves as a metaphor for Anne and her family’s confinement in the attic, with the thriving city of Amsterdam just outside their reach. The production brings Anne’s dreams and imagination to life and makes them disappear again in the blink of an eye.

Important Dates in Anne’s Life: 1929 Anne Frank is born in Frankfurt, Germany 1933 Adolf Hitler becomes Chancellor of Germany.

Boycott of Jewish businesses begins The Frank Family leaves Germany and moves to Amsterdam, in Holland

1934 Anne starts kindergarten 1940 Otto Frank starts his spice business

The German army invades Holland, and the occupation begins.

1942 Anne receives her diary as a birthday present Margot receives papers ordering her to register for mandatory work. The family moves into the “Secret Annex”

1944 The inhabitants of the Annex are betrayed and are sent to Westerbork transitcamp

1945 Margot and Anne contract typhoid and die at Bergen-Belsen

concentration camp.

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THEATRE GOLDEN RULES Before coming to the Victoria Garden’s Cultural Center’s Lewis Family Playhouse, you may want to prepare your students for the experience by going over the basic rules of theatre etiquette.

• Please remain quiet (silent) and seated during the performance. Remember, the actors on stage can hear you. Of course, laughter and applause at appropriate times are always greatly appreciated!

• Photography is not allowed inside the theatre at any time. This is not only against our union agreements, but can be

dangerous to the performers.

• Please leave all food, candy and drinks (including water) outside the theatre. Eating during a performance is very distracting and could be very messy.

• Because the theatre will be dark during the performance, if you need to use the restroom, leave the theatre or come in

late, please alert an usher who can help you find your way during a break in the action on stage.

• PLEASE turn off all pagers, cell phones and other electronic devices as they may interfere with theatre equipment and everyone’s enjoyment of the performance.

• After the show, please stay in your seats until an usher guides you out. Your bus may not be in the same place it

dropped you off!

VOCABULARY REFERENCED IN THE PLAY Emigrate: t o leave a p la ce, e specia l l y a na t i ve coun try, t o go and l i ve e lsewhe re. The Frank fami ly Lef t Germany in 1933, af te r the e l ect ion of Adol f H it ler , and emigra ted to Hol land. Thi s became more d i f f icu l t for othe rs a s the years passed, s in ce so many count r ie s were not wi l l ing to accept Jewish immigrants . The Yel low star: A l l Jews were requi red by the Nazi s to wear a ye l low Star of Dav id as a “badge ” to ident i fy them Mein Kamfp/Nuremberg Laws: H i t ler wro te Me in Kamfp befo re he came to powe r and i t was pub l ished in 1925. In the book, he wrote about h is ph i lo sophy about the “pur i ty” of the German race , and a lso expressed h is ant i- semit ic fee l i ngs. In 1935 H it l er s igned the Nuremberg Laws, whi ch se t ou t the ru les for “the Protec t ion of German B lood and Ge rman Honour” . Unde r these laws. Cit i zens could only be of German b lood , and Jews we re def ined as not be ing of German b lood. Occupat ion : t o invade and take con trol of a country. The German a rmy invaded Hol land in May of 1940 . In only a few days , a l l important areas we re se i zed. The Pr ime Min i ste r, h i s Cab inet , and the Dutch Royal Fami ly a l l f led to Eng land. Soon the coun try was unde r German Occupat i on. The Al lies: The group of coun tr ie s, i nclud ing Eng land and, l ater , the United States that were f ight ing agains t Germany. O tto Frank kept a map on the wal l i n the Annexe in wh ich he charted the prog ress of the A l l ie s and whi ch ma inta ined the fami ly ’s hope of l ibera t ion . Help ing Hands: Thi s phrase i s ment ioned th roughout the p lay and refe rs to the many thousands of non- Jewi sh peop le who put the ir own l ives in danger to save others . Betrayal : to de l ive r somebody or some thing to an enemy. The residents of the Annexe were eventual ly betrayed (no one knows by who) and the Germans sen t them al l to Westerbork, whi ch was a col l ect i on point t o transport Jews to the extermina t ion camps.

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A C T I I – BR I N GI N G T H E P L A Y IN T O T H E CL A S S R O O M

AFTER THE SHOW ACTIVITIES

Create your own diary : Anne wanted to be a writer and spent her days commenting on the world around her. Have students spend a week writing in their own diaries. What do they observe about their living situations? Have them describe their family activities and also their thoughts. How is a diary like a blog? (English/Language Arts: Writing Applications 2.0) Maps: Otto Frank kept a map of Europe on the wall of the Annexe to track the progression of the war. Have students create their own maps. These can either be of Europe (compare the Europe of Anne’s time to now), or of their own neighborhoods. Use different types of materials to create the maps. (Visual Arts: Creative Expression) Religion and Ritual: In the play, Anne dreams that she and Peter get married, and they have a Jewish wedding ceremony. Compare the customs, stories and rituals of various religions or ethnic groups. (History- Social Science: Historical research) Essay Contest: Here are some ideas for student essays based on ideas mentioned in the play: imprisonment, heroism, loyalty, family, friendship, first love, nightmares, trusting people, working together, where we live. (English-Language Arts: Writing) Music: The play uses music to help tell the audience when Anne is using her imagination. The songs are sometimes exaggerations of what is happening in “reality”. Have students create their own musical compositions based on a dream or other piece of their imagination. (Music-Creative Expression) We’d love to see your essays or diaries! Send them to us at and we’ll post some on our website! Email us at: [email protected]

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS 1. Prejudice is a preformed opinion, usually an

unfavorable one, based on insufficient knowledge, irrational feelings, or inaccurate stereotypes. It often causes suffering, and can lead to violence. In Anne’s world, prejudice against the Jews caused millions of people to be killed. Sadly, there is still prejudice in the world. How do we learn prejudice? Where does it come from? Have you ever been a victim of prejudice, or seen an incident where someone was behaving in a prejudiced way?

2. Discrimination is the unfair treatment of a

person, a racial group or any minority. Prejudice which leads to the different treatment of a certain group of people is called discrimination. This can lead to certain groups not being served in shops or restaurants, or receiving medical treatment, or jobs, etc. Does discrimination happen today? What makes people discriminate against other people?

3. Religion has often been the cause of

misunderstandings and hatred between people. In extreme cases it can lead to war. In World War II, Hitler singled out the Jews as the cause of all that was evil and bad in Germany. Many ordinary people continued their daily routine without trying to stop the fascists. Could this happen today?

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A C T I I I – E X T E N D I N G T H E LE A R N I N G

MAKING HISTORY COME ALIVE: INTEGRATING THE PERFORMING ARTS INTO THE CURRICULUM

Using the performing arts is an excellent way to stimulate creative approaches to the traditional curriculum areas. Using film and music in the classroom, visiting museums with your students or inviting guest speakers are not just ways to make the subject more fun, but actually do improve the ability of diverse learners to understand and retain the material. Whether in history, math, science or any “non-arts” based subject, the performing arts can provide an invaluable way to scaffold the information for those who struggle with the material. When planning your lessons, you might consider the following:

♣ Inviting students to make a visual representation or recording of a friend or family member recounting their experiences during a historically significant time.

♣ Have students draw their impressions of significant events occurring in assigned readings.

♣ Invite students to make physical models to demonstrate scientific concepts.

Useful Websites…. Anne Frank Museum (www.annefrank.org) Your online portal to the Anne Frank Museum in Amsterdam. This multimedia site includes information about Anne’s life, death and the lasting legacy of her diary. It also includes links to international projects dedicated to informing and educating people about the Franks and ending discrimination. Anne Frank Center (www.annefrank.com) The Anne Frank Center, located in New York, offers information for students and teachers regarding Anne’s life. The site also lists current exhibits of Anne Frank memorabilia throughout the United States. Museum of Tolerance (www.museumoftolerance.com) The Museum’s site offers a multimedia introduction to contemporary and historic incidents of injustice. Located in Los Angeles, the site also offers information for students and teachers including curriculum support and opportunities to speak with Holocaust survivors.

DID YOU KNOW?

• The Victoria Gardens Library has over 1000 books and media in the Performing Arts collections for Adults and Children.

• The Library also offers extensive online

resources and tools you can use to bring technology and arts into the classroom.

• The Library and Playhouse present joint

performing arts programming that supports state curriculum standards.

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AB O U T T H E T H E A T R E……

N O T E S F R O M T H E A U T H O R:

Excerpt from author’s introduction in the Methuan student edition of the play DREAMS OF ANNE FRANK: It is not surprising that young people identify with Anne Frank. Many young people feel trapped and locked within themselves, are trying to grow up and make sense of the senseless happenings going on in the world of adults happening around them…

But why was I chosen to dramatize Anne Frank?…in 1904 my father left his Jewish community in Amsterdam in order to try to make a living in London. He settled in the East End and married my mother whose parents were also very poor Jews who hoped to find a better life in London…The poverty lasted until the outbreak of the Second World War. I was thirteen years old at the time; roughly the same age as Anne Frank. But whereas I was allowed the luxury and joy of growing up and marrying and having a career and a family, children and grandchildren, Anne remains forever locked in time; an eternal adolescent.

As a child, I often used to wonder about my relatives back in Holland and sometimes we would get news of them. I dreamed of going there and was proud of my Dutch heritage. Just before the war broke out, a message arrived from Amsterdam. It begged us all to return to Holland. They were certain Holland would remain neutral. We were assured that we would be safer there and would escape the horrors of the inevitable approaching war. But our poverty in London was intense and we used to go to the soup kitchen every evening, just to survive. My father, however, was now fired with the idea that we all had to return to Holland and safety. To make this possible, he needed just fifty pounds to pay the fare for the entire family. He tried to borrow the money. He tried to beg the money. He tried everywhere, everyone. But money was in short supply. He failed and I still remember him wailing. Thus we were thwarted from returning to Amsterdam, and thus we survived the death camps. All our Dutch relatives went to their deaths. They evaporated into silence, forever. If my father had succeeded in borrowing the money, we all would have made the same journey as Anne; we would have been rounded up and sent to the transit camp at Westerbork and then to Auschwitz… The work is a total imaginative creation. All the events and dialogue during the action are imagined and subjective. I created the characters, relationships and events purely from the depths of my mind. Memory has no absolute chronology. But how to find the real Anne? The flesh-and-blood Anne? The girl who lived and breathed beneath the legend? How to make a living legend become human? When Anne entered that attic in June 1942 she also entered history. But I was interested in my Anne. The Anne of flesh and blood. The subjective Anne. The Anne of dreams. This is why I was not interested in dramatizing the diary. I needed to take another route, to find that specific human being, to strip away the deification and bring her down to earth. In order to do this, I needed dream logic, movement and song. I needed to create subjective events and personalities. If Anne could not move around in the real world of Amsterdam, she could move around in her mind. There, within her imagination, all is possible. Anne can travel to the Hollywood she dreamed about. She can go ice-skating; she can journey into the Black Forest in search of the gingerbread house; she can converse directly with Winston Churchill. She can get married. She can even assassinate Hitler and save her people. She can plead with the children of the world to bear witness to the madness of human beings…. Dreams of Anne Frank is not a dramatization of her diary. Rather, it is an original way of focusing upon the girl, to bring alive that unquenchable spirit and show how she managed to be creative in the darkest of times. To write the play, I went to the facts of her life for the spine of reality and to my imagination for the subjective matrix, the foundation of my drama.

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MORE ABOUT THE THEATRE…

THEATRE VOCABULARY

Actor: A person, male or female, who performs a role in a play.

Character: The personality or part an actor re-creates.

Characterization: The development and portrayal of a personality through thought, action, dialogue, costuming and make-up.

Context: The interrelated conditions in which a play exists or occurs. Design: The creative process of developing and executing aesthetic or functional designs in a production, such as costumes, lighting, sets, and makeup. Monologue: A long speech by a single character. Motivation: A character’s reason for doing or saying things in a play. Subtext: Information that is implied by a character but not stated by a character in dialogue, including actions and thoughts. Style: The distinctive and unique manner in which a writer arranges words to achieve particular effects. Premiere: The first time a play is performed in front of an audience. The MainStreet Theatre Company is proud to be doing the U.S. premiere of this play, which has been performed all over Europe, but not in the United States.

THEATRE RELATED ACTIVITIES: ♣ The play uses dreams and music to help to tell

Anne’s story. Have students create their own short play using a dream or a story as a starting off point (Theatre: Creative Expression )

♣ The play takes place in the early 1940’s. Discuss

the style the actors use to convey this to the audience. Have students perform monologues or scenes which incorporate the mannerisms that might be used in different time periods. (Theatre: Historical and Cultural Context)

♣ Dreams of Anne Frank is not a conventional

play. It uses many theatrical elements, such as music and lighting as the story moves from “reality” to what is only in Anne’s imagination. Have students discuss or write about the various elements used in the play to take us into different worlds. (Theatre: Artistic Perception)

♣ In Anne’s imagination, Mrs. Van Daan becomes a

witch and Mr. Dussell becomes a scary man in the street. Have students improvise exaggerated versions of themselves or their classmates. (Theatre: Creative Expression)

♣ Write a review of the production, discussing the

costumes, scenery and performances. (Theatre:Aesthetic Valuing)

THE LEWIS FAMILY PLAYHOUSE has 536 seats, on 2 levels. The part of the theatre that the audience sees is called the “Front of House”. The Front of House has many components. When you first walk into the theatre, you enter the Theatre Lobby. The Lewis Family Playhouse lobby has been designed to look like a street, called Main Street. In the lobby you will also find the box office, which is where you buy tickets. In order to take your seat, you enter the auditorium. The Lewis Family Playhouse auditorium has two levels: The orchestra is downstairs, and the mezzanine (also called the balcony) is upstairs. The ushers are the people who tear your ticket and show you to your seat. They will also give you a printed program, which has information about the actors and the other people responsible for bringing the play to life.

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AB O U T T H E LI B R A R Y

BOOKS @ THE LIBRARY

If you have any questions about any library

resources, call the reference desk at 909.477.2720.

Diary of Anne Frank YA Frank The original unedited diary kept by Anne during her time in hiding. The Last Seven Months of Anne Frank 921 Frank Based on the documentary of the same name, this book features eyewitness accounts of Anne’s life in the camps. Anne Frank Remembered: The Story of the Woman Who Helped Hide the Frank Family 921 GIES Written by Miep Gies, upon whom the Frank’s relied to shield them from the Nazi’s, she gives insight into the daily life and struggles of the family and her own difficulties outwitting the occupying German forces. Anne Frank and Children of the Holocaust J 940.53 LEE The life of Anne Frank before and during her life in hiding is expanded upon as the author recounts the lives of other children who suffered similar fates, survived and even attempted dangerous acts of heroism in the face of Nazi persecution. Memories of Anne Frank 949.2 GOL Anne Frank’s story, as told through the eyes of Hannah Goslar, one of Anne’s closest friends and one of the last people to see her alive.

LIBRARY TOUR INFORMATION

As part of your class visit to the Lewis Family Playhouse, why not take a tour of the Victoria Gardens Cultural Center Library? The second of two physical branches of the library (RCPL also offers an extensive virtual library), the facility has over 100,000 volumes housed in a beautiful, 23,000 square foot facility. Among the facility’s unique features are its 20 seat technology center, teen study area and a special performing arts collection. Pre- and post- show tours last approximately 15 minutes and are scheduled on a first come, first served basis. To arrange a tour, call Casey Macarello, Adult Services Librarian at 909.477.2720 ext. 5064.

UPCOMING EVENTS Saturdays, 2-4pm Family Saturdays Join us for a variety of fun family activities every Saturday afternoon. (for the family) February 9, 2008, 2-4pm Happy Birthday, Stinky Cheese Man! We’re celebrating the best in offbeat children’s literature! (for the family) February 28, 2008, 7pm Music Jam Fest Bring your instruments and jam with us or just sit back and relax and enjoy the music. (for Teens) March 27, 2008, 7pm Spring Break Movie Night Take a break and watch movies with us! (for Teens)

This Curriculum guide was prepared by the staffs of the Rancho Cucamonga Public Library & the Lewis Family Playhouse. For questions, comments, or suggestions, please contact Mireya “Murry” Hepner at 909.477.2775

Documents

A Resource Guide for Teachers and Parents · 2019-07-05 · DREAMS OF ANNE FRANK was commissioned by the Polka Theatre (a well regarded theatre for young audiences in London) in 1992