By: Charla Cole/Instructional Paraprofessional

The students in Mrs. Catalano’s English class have been studying the holocaust and how children during that time were deeply affected.  During our latest trip to Algonquin Theater, we saw a live performance of, “My Heart in a Suitcase”. This is a true story about noted author, Anne Lehmann Fox and her family who no longer feel safe in their Berlin home. Life in 1938 Nazi Germany was deteriorating quickly for all Jews living there and in order to protect Anne and keep her safe, her parents made a choice to send her to England via the Kindertransport. Realizing they may have to say goodbye to their daughter forever, her parents did their best to prepare Anne for an uncertain future. She struggled to say goodbye to her family and best friend Dorit who ironically was a member of the Hitler Youth. Although Anne lost both of her parents in concentration camps, she still remained close friends with Dorit and kept in touch with her for many years.

   In watching this play, the students learned about strength, courage, friendship, and sacrifices that parents made to protect their children during the holocaust. This wraps up our series of educational plays and performances for the school year at Algonquin Theater. We have seen some amazing shows with tremendous talent and can’t wait to see what is in store for next year!

Did You Know: Kindertransport was able to negotiate the safe passage of about 10,000 children, most of whom were Jewish, from Germany, Austria and Czechoslovakia to Great Britain.