By JESSICA NEU
Theatrical performances function in countless ways. Some shows are purely for entertainment. Some carry a timeless theme but still make us laugh. Some shows evoke a sense of nostalgia, grief, excitement, or elation. Many shows have some historical significance, but a select few highlight a historical event in a way that speaks to the importance of generational stories and contains not just a timeless theme but also a lesson to learn from the past.
Celeste Raspanti’s I Never Saw Another Butterfly and The Terezin Promise is one of those shows. Prime Stage Theater, with the help of the Holocaust Center and the Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Hall and Museum, brings this powerful tale of fear, hope, courage, and promises despite the uncertainty of tomorrow to the New Hazlett Theater.
Directed by Prime Stage’s Wayne Brinda, I Never Saw Another Butterfly… takes us to the Terezin concentration camp near the time when World War II was coming to an end. Raja Englanderova (Meredith Kocur) is sent to Terezin and meets Irene Synkova (Holland Adele Taylor). Irene is an Austrian teacher who delivers a sense of purpose, hope, and life through art and creativity. Each day, Irene teaches five girls (Eva Balodimas Friedlander, Sadie Karashin, Molly Frontz, Aftny Tomaceski, and Kocur) and together they share their dismay of living in Terezin, fear of what tomorrow might bring, but also hope for the future. At the beginning of act one, each girl reads a poem they penned about their experience in Terezin. The girls describe Terezin as a place of evil and fear, but they still hold onto hope that the time will come when they can return home. They question how “if in barbed wire, things can bloom, why can’t I…I will not die.”They wish to exist in a place with nicer people where there is no killing. They find motivation to stay alive, knowing their presence and stories can improve the world.
All five girls and Taylor approach and execute the emotional intensity of I Never Saw Another Butterfly…with power and maturity. Their palpable fear and pain when they talk about their friends who have been called to Auschwitz is painful to hear and uncomfortable to watch, but a necessary reminder of our world’s history. Irene absorbs their fear but is also honest with the girls, telling them that they are no longer children. She explains that she had a nine-year-old daughter who was thrown from the train by a frustrated Nazi. The soldiers also stopped Irene from throwing herself off of the train after her daughter. Now, she keeps her daughter’s spirit alive in every girl she teaches.
Taylor delivers a determined, driven, and passionate performance. She is brave, nurturing, and wise, an unyielding leader who leaves an indelible mark on her students and the audience. Her tenacity complements Kocur’s portrayal of Raja, whose fear morphs into an unrelenting resolve to survive Terezin and maintain the memories of her time there so she can share her story with the world. Kocur specifically shines during her monologues throughout the show, where she details her spectrum of constant thoughts, feelings, and overwhelming emotions. Kocur conveys gut-wrenching tales of her desire to return to a home that will never be what it was when she left, the loss of those around her, and falling in love with a fellow student, Honza Kosek (Aaron Little). As Honza is called to Auschwitz, a tearful, confused, and grief-stricken Raja torments herself by waiting for tomorrow in hopes that the war will end before Honza is murdered.
Irene instills her wisdom into Raja by telling her to “stop thinking of tomorrow and keep alive today…that is the secret to waiting. If you’re afraid of tomorrow, think of today.” This mindset allows each young person at Terezin to push forward. However, as the war comes to an end, the Nazis begin to act out in desperation by burning all records of everyone and everything about Terezin. Their attempt to erase their actions and ultimately erase history enrages and empowers the remaining students at Terezin. Raja leads her peers as they plan their exit, but not before finding and securing all the artwork, letters, poetry, and crafts she and her friends created during their time at Terezin. Memories remain of friends who became family even though their physical presence is gone. Even when they feel like hating instead of loving, their artwork and lessons learned in Terezin remind them that hate only gives Hitler another victory.
The talented young ladies and their antagonistic yet pragmatic friend, Hanus Sattler (Jackson Frazer), demonstrate the power of solidarity and determination. Each actor heeds the responsibility of telling a story that is well beyond their years and deeply important in our world’s history. Each time one student lowers their head in defeat and dismay, a different peer is there to counter their sorrow with a reminder to live and hope. They draw strength in their unity and show what is possible when we work together. Brinda’s minimalist production allows the actors’ talents to shine. We see every movement and facial expression that expresses a combination of fear, tenacious hope, and the will to live.
In the acclaimed musical Hamilton, Lin-Manuel Miranda writes, “who lives, who dies, who tells your story?” I Never Saw Another Butterfly…not only tells the story of these brave Jewish people living in a desolate concentration camp but also reminds us of the importance of keeping generational stories alive. Without the artwork and poetry intact, the stories of so many young Jews would have died with their bodies at the hands of the Nazis. However, due to the bravery of people like Raja and her peers, these individuals will live on through their images, creativity, and spirit. Raja questions how she would even be able to prove that Terezin existed without the artwork.
Although the tale of Terezin has horrific details and unthinkable cruelties, we must use artifacts like artwork, poetry, and Raspanti’s script to remind ourselves that Terezin was only liberated 80 years ago. As political rhetoric swirls each day with debates and comparisons between the current United States and Nazi Germany, I Never Saw Another Butterfly and the Terezin Promise is a powerful retelling of a true story that begs audiences to promise that we will do everything we can to stop history from repeating itself. The entire cast and crew of this show carry the weight of every Jewish person who lived during the Holocaust. They courageously speak the words of a marginalized population plagued with fear, remind us what a dictatorship looks like, and bring to life the emotional and necessary tale of hope and the will to survive another day.
TICKETS AND DETAILS
Prime Stage Theater’s production of Celeste Raspanti’s I Never Saw Another Butterfly and The Terezin Promise hs at the New Hazlett Theater from now theough March 9th, 2025. More information and tickets at https://primestage.com/education/engage-program/
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