The Story Of Anne Frank Study Guide - Bright Star Theatre

www.brightstartheatre.comTHE STORY OF ANNE FRANKThis4ho 5-minFran nors th ute produe lifk anctedshe the fa of Ann ionin hmoukepeidintsg in while i diarynAmsterdam.About the PlayStudy GuideAlways FreeBright Star Touring TheatreAnne Frank’s Diary has been translated into sixtyand has sold thirseven languagesty million copiesaround the world.wonderful quotesIt’s full oflike this.In spite of everything, I still believe-Anne Frank, Julypeople are good15th 1944at heart.We traveled all the way to theAnne Frank House in Amsterdam toresearch and create this engagingproduction about the life of Anne Frankand the diary she kept during the heightof the Nazi invasion of Europe.With this play, young audiences willgain an understanding of this difficulttime in history through the perspectiveof one inspiring young woman whorecorded her experience. Audiences willlearn about pivotal moments which leadto the Frank’s decision to go into hidingand what life was like for them in theirsecret home. They will also beintroduced to important people inAnne’s life; her family, friends and thepeople who helped her family hide forabout two years. Through this play, wehope audiences will understand theclimate of the world during Anne’s lifeand feel empowered to learn fromhistory and make their world a safe andaccepting place."Anne Frank received adiary for her 13thbirthday on June 12th,1942. She startedwriting in the diaryright away and wentinto hiding less than onemonth later.Bright Star Theatre 336-558-7360 www.brightstartheatre.com

THE STORY OF ANNE FRANKTHE SECRET ANNEXThe Secret Annex is the name given to thehome Anne’s family created in order to hidefrom Nazi forces when they invaded TheNetherlands along with much of Europe.Why did the Frank family have to hide?Anne and her family were originally fromGermany, but when the Nazis came to powerlife became very difficult for Jewish people likethe Franks. They moved to Amsterdam in theNetherlands in 1934 and were happy there forseveral years. Eventually the Nazis took overmore of Europe; they began occupying theNetherlands in 1940. Anne and other Jewishpeople had to go to different schools,swimming pools and even movies. In addition,more and more Jewish people were beingforced by the Nazis to report to work campsand concentration camps. On July 5th, 1942,Anne’s sister Margot got a letter saying shehad to report to a German work camp. Thiswas very dangerous for Jews; Anne’s fatherknew that they may never see Margot again ifshe obeyed the order. They decided to go intohiding; World War II had begun and theyhoped to hide until the Nazis were defeated sothey could return to life as normal."Where was The Secret Annex?Anne’s father, Otto Frank, had plannedthe Secret Annex for a long time. It washidden in the back of the building where Ottoowned a business; a company that madepectin (which was used to make jelly and otherthings). The entrance to the secret house wasbehind a bookcase that could be opened.What happened to the Secret Annex?The Franks, the van Pels and one mannamed Fritz Pfeffer (eight people total) livedthere for over two years, safe from the harshenvironment just outside their windows. OnAugust 4th, 1944 the Frank family wasdiscovered. Someone called the Naziauthorities and told them there were Jewsliving behind Otto Frank’s business. They weretaken to Concentration Camps and theauthorities ransacked the Secret Annex but didnot discover Anne’s diary. The only survivorfrom the Secret Annex was Otto Frank.The Secret Annex TodayToday, you can visit The Anne FrankHouse Museum in Amsterdam. Here you cantake tour of the house and see the room whereAnne stayed. Some of her favorite photos andads remain on the wall.Bright Star Theatre 336-558-7360 www.brightstartheatre.com2PAGEA Great Resourcefor learning moreabout Anne Frank:annefrank.orgHere, you can take avirtual tour of theAnne Frank House,learn about everyonewho lived in TheSecret Annex, readpieces from Anne’sdiary and more!Activity Idea:Take a virtual tour ofthe museum as a classand have studentswrite their own diaryentry describing theirthoughts. What wouldit be like to live therewith eight people?What would it be liketo never go outside?

THE STORY OF ANNE FRANKClassroom Activity: Who was involved?Find someone in your community who wasinvolved in this pivotal time. This could be asurvivor of the Holocaust, a World War IIVeteran, someone who helped take care ofsoldiers someone who helped with the wareffort. Try contacting Jewish CommunityCenters, or centers who work with Veterans.Can you find someone who will speak to theclass? You can also write letters to Veteransthanking them for their service.Classroom Activity: Living in SilenceAnne and her family had to live in silencewith the curtains drawn for months at a time.Try living in silence as a class for 5-10minutes-maybe more! What is it like tocommunicate and function without beingable to make a sound?Classroom Activity: The Secret AnnexCreate a map of the Secret Annex. Wholived in what rooms? What are the mostimportant locations in the space?THINGS YOUDIDN’T KNOWABOUT THEATRE!After a play is over and everyone goeshome, there is always a light left onbackstage. It’s called a ghost light!When plays ended in Ancient Greece,audiences used to stomp their feetinstead of clapping.The oldest playthat is still around was written by anAncient Greek named Aeschylus. It’salmost 2500 years old!Classroom Activity: Timeline of Anne’s LifeCreate a timeline of the major events inAnne Frank’s life.Classroom Activity: Radio and MediaThe main way Anne and her family knewwhat was going on in the world was by listening tothe radio. Listen to radio broadcasts from the timeby googling WWII radio broadcasts-it may help toinclude specific years in your google search.The longest performance on stage wasover 23 hours long! It happened in NewJersey in 2010.3PAGEActivity: The World of Anne FrankBreak students into groupsand have each of them do a shortresearch activity on one of thefollowing people or terms. Haveeach group present their findings.To extend this activity, considerhaving students make posters orPower Point presentations.-Kitty-Antisemitism-Miep Gies-Edith Frank-German Work Camps/Concentration Camps-World War II-The van Pels family-United States HolocaustMemorial Museum-Otto Frank- Kristallnacht- German Occupation- Star of David- Margot Frank- Allied Forces- Vi c t o r Ku g l e r & JoKleiman- Liberation-Other groups thatexperienced the holocaust suchas Gypsies, Polish people andothers.William Shakespeare is a famous playwriter. He wrote 37 plays and is stillquoted by many people. There are 157million google pages that mention him-the most of any famous person ever!Try watching one of the great clips,interviews or documentaries about Anne’slife. Here are some great ideas to researchonline or at the library:Interviews with her father, Otto FrankInterviews with Meip GeisIn theatre, it’s considered bad luck to tellInterviews with Ed Silverberg or Evaan actor, “Good luck” before aSchloss, survivors of the holocaust who knewperformance.Instead, you’re supposedAnne.to say, “Break a Leg!”"Bright Star Touring Theatre 336-558-7360 www.brightstartheatre.com

THE STORY OF ANNE FRANKBEFOREYOU SEETHE PLAY.Here are sometips before yousee the play.eyes upfront.4. If you like1. Please bethe play, beAttending thequiet andsure to claptheatre is veryrespectful soat the end.different fromeveryone5. Notice howwatching TV orelse aroundthe story isgoing to theyou can hearbeingmovies. Forwhat’sconveyed byone thing, thehappeningthe actors.actors are realand so theHow do theypeople who areactors can douse theirperformingtheir job.body andright then and2. The actorsvoice to bethere. Theymayaskyoudifferentcan see andtocharacters?hearparticipate.everything that6. Listen to theDon’t behappens in thefacts that areafraid toaudience.in the play torespond, askBecause of this,understanda question oryou are anthe what thevolunteer!important partworld wasof the play and3. Please keeplike at theits important toyour handstime.do your job asto yourselfan audienceand yourmember well.Afterseeing thePlay.Write your own reviewof the play! A review is away of telling yourthoughts about a play,movie or book. Considerthe following when youare writing your review.Who was your favoritecharacter? What was thesetting or location of thestory? Can you summarizethe play in your own words?If you had written this play,would you have doneanything different? Wouldyou recommend this play toa friend? Name one newthing you learned fromwatching this play!4PAGEFIRST THEY CAME FOR.First they came for the Socialists, and I didnot speak out because I was not a SocialistThen they came for the Trade Unionists,and I did not speak out because I was not aTrade Unionist.Then they came for the Jews, and I did notspeak out because I was not a JewThen they came for me-and there was noone left to speak out for me.This was a poem written by a Pastornamed Martin Niermoller. It is about all ofthe different groups of people who weretargeted by the Nazis: Jews, Gypsies, peoplewith disabilities and many other groupswere persecuted by the Nazis and manypeople lost their lives because of it. Readand discuss this poem. What point do youthink the author was trying to make? Whatfeeling do you get from reading or hearingthe poem? How can we make sure nothinglike the Holocaust happens again? It wasdangerous to help people like the Frank’shide, but many people did help others atthis time. Why do you think they chose todo this?"The Frank family shared their Secret Annex with another family named the van Pels and one man namedFritz Pfeffer. There were eight people total living in a very small space and Anne wrote about the challenges ofthis in her diary. They had to be very quiet and avoid looking out of the windows to avoid being discovered.Bright Star Theatre 336-558-7360 www.brightstartheatre.comStatue of Anne Frank inWesterkerk Plaza near theAnne Frank House.