Dancing in front of a heap of clothing, the cast of “Ghetto,” written by Joshua Sobol, rehearsed a dance number from the show on Nov. 6 at the Eastern Center for the Performing Arts. Set to open on Nov. 21, play director Dr. Gregg Molotsky explained that the heap of clothing serves as a haunting reminder throughout the play of the 50,000 Jews who were marched out of Vilna Ghetto and executed in the neighboring woods.
“It stays there throughout the whole show as a presence,” Molotsky said. “It represents the weight of what has happened.”
“Ghetto,” a Holocaust drama with music, is a fictional piece inspired by a historical theater that operated in the Jewish ghetto from 1941 until 1943. Following the massacre, the play follows the experiences of nearly 15,000 Jewish men and women who were detained during Nazi occupation in World War II.
Molotsky added that while the play is ultimately focused on the experiences of those living in the ghetto, the play also poses difficult questions without forcing answers, leaving the audience to ponder on their own what they would do.
Coming off “You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown” last year, Molotsky admitted that he did question whether the students would be able to delve into a heavier subject matter.
“They’ve been great,” he said, explaining how his cast was able to rise to the occasion.
To help establish a greater foundation of knowledge for the cast, Molotsky hosted a group screening of “Schindler’s List” with his cast, as well as a trip to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum and National World War II Memorial in Washington, D.C.
Molotsky added that he felt his cast was able to connect more with the humanity of the event, as opposed to it being something that happened in the past.
“Certainly, I think it moved from being really abstract to more concrete and literal,” Molotsky said.
Junior Mellissa Lubars said that, unlike the plays in the past, she enjoyed working on “Ghetto” due to the amount of research that went into it. Being Jewish, she said she was moved a great deal by “Schindler’s List.” She added that visiting the museum was also a very real experience, after seeing artifacts from the Vilna Ghetto theater company.
“The Holocaust museum was very informative, but also very deep,” Lubars said.
Lubars said that while researching the play, she was surprised to learn how those contained within the camp were able to cope through artistic expression.
“It was a surprise to me that they made musicals,” Lubars said. “That’s incredible.”
Playing the role of “Judith,” Lubars will perform both a solo musical number as well as singing as part of a trio. Being no stranger to singing, Lubars said she has very little anxiety after performing in previous productions such as “The King and I” and “City of Angels.”
In addition, Lubars has performed as Peace Blossom in “Midsummer Night’s Dream” and in “You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown.”
“Fall play is originally supposed to be acting, but Gregg added music and dancing,” Lubars said.
While no easy task for this play, Molotsky explained that all songs incorporated in the play were composed within the ghetto during World War II.
He said at first the songs had to be tracked down and then translated. However, Molotsky explained that for one of any of the songs was a multiple translated version, something he added was a hard concept for the cast to grasp.
However, being translated from Yiddish and German, Molotsky explained that multiple versions of the translated songs exist due to the fact that some words in one language may not exist in another, such as trying to explain the song “Frosty The Snowman” to a person who has never seen snow.
He also said that there was some anxiety as to how music would affect such a substantial subject matter.
“We were worried how the music would be amidst the drama,” Molotsky said.
With schools now mandating the education of the Holocaust as well as other acts of genocide, such as those that occurred in Rwanda and Darfur, Molotsky added that he hopes the play will spark interest and that the audience will leave with a deeper understanding of such horrific events.
Playing the role of the “Judge” in the fall play, Jaclyn Platt also said she hopes the audience will see a more human side to the Holocaust since the play is primarily focused on the one community living inside the ghetto.
“I hope the audience can connect with the people and not just the event,” Platt said.
“Ghetto” will open at the Eastern Center for the Performing Arts on Thursday, Nov. 21 at 7 p.m. Encore performances will be held on Friday, Nov. 22 and Saturday, Nov. 23 at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are on sale for $6 per person. In addition, non-perishable food donations can be made during any performance as part of the cast’s food drive.
