Preview: Souvenir d’Anne Frank @ Zion Arts Centre – January 27

By Dean Wilkins

Manchester’s Zion Arts Centre is hosting the premiere of Ensemble’s Anne Frank production in support of the national Holocaust Memorial Day later this month.

The theatre company will portray the legacy of Frank and her diary through a fascinating story, and will include the tale of the Souvenir d’Anne Frank rose which was dedicated to Anne by her father Otto.

The performance will preview on January 21, with the premiere on Friday January 27, the day of remembrance.

Members of the public and various organisation representatives can debate the play’s central themes during an open debate after each performance.

Ensemble’s artistic director, Elizabeth Mansfield, who is also performing in the show, said: “We are delighted to be premiering Souvenir d’Anne Frank at Zion Arts Centre in Manchester and to be telling the fascinating story of Anne Frank and her rose, in such a unique and entertaining way.

“We hope the post show discussions with key figures from local organisations will allow the audience to discuss the central themes of the play and to see how they relate to current hardships faced by people seeking asylum.”

Ensemble, which was established in 2001, will also be planting a graft of the Souvenir d’Anne Frank rose in the UK for the first time, on the eve of Holocaust Memorial Day at the Manchester Jewish Museum.

Holocaust Memorial Day aims to educate people about the dangers of anti-Semitism, racism and all forms of discrimination. It is an opportunity to pay respects to all victims of genocide since the end of World War Two, as well as those who died during the Holocaust.

It is commemorated internationally on 27th January, the date in 1945 when the allies liberated Auschwitz-Birkenau, the largest Nazi concentration camp.

Anne Frank’s diary has sold over 31 million copies worldwide and been translated into 67 languages.