Curtain Call set to show six performances of 'The Diary of Anne Frank'

May 10—Gathering around a menorah, high school students balanced cheerful celebration and fear for their lives.

At least, that's what they were trying to portray. The serious tone was broken when one of the students asked for their lines. They were actors who still had nine days to get their performance of "The Diary of Anne Frank" ready for audiences.

Curtain Call Theatre for Children plans to hold six showings of the play, beginning Thursday at 7 p.m. The organization's studio has been transformed to represent the three-story annex that Anne Frank hid in for more than two years.

Jeremy Leazenby Bruce, the show's director, explained he usually prefers musicals. But he had directed "The Diary of Anne Frank" before and the story stuck with him.

"It's such a powerful story to tell and it has such a big educational piece to it that I wanted to do it again," Leazenby Bruce said.

The play was initially set to be Curtain Call's winter high school play. However, a considerable portion of Curtain Call's usual performers had signed up to work on Tipton Community Theatre's production of "Frozen Jr."

Now, the play has enough performers to replace some members in a second cast.

With the exception of five roles, the casts will swap back and forth for each performance.

Portraying history

Given the historical nature of the play, Leazenby Bruce said the production team was able to research what Anne Frank's secret annex looked like while she lived there.

Although the Curtain Call studio doesn't have multiple floors, the director said the studio is small enough to imitate the annex's "intimate feel."

Curtain Call is also working with a dramaturg, someone who can provide cultural and historical information. Leazenby Bruce explained students have learned about different holidays, such as Hanukkah and Passover, while working on the show. Whenever the students pray on stage, they'll be speaking Hebrew.

There have also been discussions about the Holocaust and key events, such as Kristallnacht, a period of antisemitic violence between Nov. 9 — 10, 1938.

Olivia Steele, a Northwestern High School freshman, read Anne Frank's autobiography last year. She was interested in Frank's story, so when she saw Curtain Call was holding auditions for the theater version of "The Diary of Anne Frank," she decided to try out for the lead role.

Steele will play the lead role for all six performances. She said there's a difference between reading the autobiography and working on the show.

Although the autobiography was powerful, she said the words on the page felt more powerful as she stepped into the role.

"I feel a really big connection to her," Steele said.

The role of Anne Frank marks Steele's first time playing an historical character. She said it was easier to prepare for the role, since she was able to read historical documents instead of character notes to get a better understanding of the role.

"I'm glad that she put it all down, so everyone knows what it really was all like," Steele said. "There's not that many people alive still who can tell that story."

Talon Hawkins, a Kokomo High School junior, is playing Otto Frank, Anne's father, for each of the performances.

He likes the role.

"He's so tender and kind," Hawkins said. "He's prepared, he's accommodating, he brought in people when he was wondering if they even had room."

Hawkins said he also appreciates the family dynamic in the show, noting Otto's ability to take charge and bring order when it's needed. There are a few "dad moments" in the show he appreciates as well.

There are a few relatable characteristics Hawkins has found in the role. Namely, Otto's occasional goofiness and his avoidance of unnecessary conflict.

"He knows the reality of the world and he just kind of wants to make it better," Hawkins said. "And that's something I really relate to."

Similar to Steele, Otto is the first historical role Hawkins has played.

"I really like being a part of history, so to speak, and to bring it to life," Hawkins said.

Carol Anderson, the show's dramaturg, has helped make the story feel more authentic.

A lifelong fan of theater, she went to the initial auditions for the show when Curtain Call planned to hold "The Diary of Anne Frank" in the winter. When she saw the organization was holding auditions again, she reached out to ask if they needed any help.

"I'm helping them understand Jewishness," Anderson said.

For example, the dramaturg noticed the actors putting their hands together while reciting a Jewish prayer. She informed them Jewish people don't conventionally put their hands together to pray — if they aren't holding a prayer book, they let their hands rest at their side.

Some of the actors have picked up the conventions quicker than others, Anderson said. Especially the students who recorded her reciting prayers like Sim Shalom, which is a prayer for peace.

Anderson also brought in a yamaka, a prayer shawl and several prayer books she found in her synagogue from the 1930s and 1940s.

The prayer books were especially interesting to Anderson. She explained her synagogue, Temple B'Nai Israel, was established in 1942.

"It really was built when all this (the Holocaust) was happening," the dramaturg said.

Anderson said she sees familiar hints of prejudice when people discuss immigrants from Central and South America.

"Some people on the political side were calling them animals and creatures and rodents, and that's the same thing they did to the Jewish people in the 1930s and '40s," Anderson said. "You just can't judge people by their religion or the color of their skin or what they believe in. I'm hoping people will see that."

Final thoughts from the directors

"I think Anne Frank had a positive outlook. Her positivity helped the families that were living in the annex to be in hiding for over two years," Leazenby Bruce said. "She wanted to have faith in everybody and find good in everybody. I think that's the story we want to tell: That there's good in everybody."

The show's assistant director, Hallie Roth, had similar thoughts.

She referenced a quote from Anne Frank, "In spite of everything, I still believe that people are really good at heart."

Roth played Anne Frank when Leazenby Bruce directed the show at Northwestern High School eight years ago. The famous quote stuck with her.

"Even if you don't get along with them, or even if you don't agree with everything, there's always something good in the negative," Roth said. "There's so many negative things out in the world. Why be negative when you have the choice to be positive?"

In total, Curtain Call is planning to host six performances of "The Diary of Anne Frank." The performances will be split between two weeks.

Leazenby Bruce explained the Curtain Call studio is limited to 60 audience members. He wanted to put the show in front of as many people as possible, so he decided to add an extra weekend.

James Bennett III can be reached at 765-454-8580 or james.bennett@kokomotribune.com.