Stage adaptation of acclaimed children’s book ‘Hana’s Suitcase’ gets U.S. premiere Jan. 11-21

In March 2000, a child’s suitcase bearing the name and birth date of Hana Brady arrived at the Tokyo Holocaust Education Resource Center. Painted across this battered piece of luggage was the German word “waisenkind,” or “orphan.”

With these few clues, a determined group of Japanese schoolchildren, led by their teacher, Fumiko Ishioka, set out to uncover Hana’s identity. Their story, intertwined with that of young Hana, became the basis of “Hana’s Suitcase” (2002), Karen Levine’s acclaimed children’s book, which has since been translated into 27 languages and won numerous awards in Canada, the United States and abroad.

In January, Washington University in St. Louis will co-produce a new stage adaptation of “Hana’s Suitcase” by the playwright Emil Sher. The play, a U.S. premiere, is jointly produced by the university’s Edison Theatre and the Metro Theater Company, St. Louis’ foremost professional company for young people.

A play about the Holocaust for children?

“Kids today are inundated by media: books, movies, television and the Internet,” says Charlie Robin, executive director of Edison Theatre. “Yet the performing arts — theatre, music and dance — can also be tremendous tools for learning. They have a kind of immediacy and emotional power that helps young people relate stories to their own lives.

“Parents are always their children’s first and primary teachers,” Robin continues, “but I think ‘Hana’s Suitcase’ will spark conversations that parents may not otherwise know how to begin.”

Still, introducing children to events as painful as the Holocaust does pose a particular challenge, notes Erin McGlothlin, Ph.D., assistant professor of Germanic languages & literatures in Arts & Sciences at Washington University and an expert on Holocaust literature.

“On the one hand, you have to avoid simplistic explanations and present the Holocaust in all its historical complexity and specificity,” McGlothlin explains. “Otherwise it’s just a tale of senseless atrocity. On the other hand, the story has to be digestible for children and offer some glimmer of hope, some affirmation of life. And you have to be careful about not traumatizing them with too much brutal detail. It’s really a huge task.”

Like the book, the stage adaptation of “Hana’s Suitcase” cuts back-and-forth between two narrative threads. As Fumiko and her class pursue clues from Tokyo to Prague and ultimately Canada — where they learn Hana’s fate — we also see glimpses of the Brady family, whose happy life in the small Czech town of Nove Mesto is shattered in 1939 by the Nazi invasion.

“Hana’s story isn’t sugar-coated,” McGlothlin says. “But there’s also a moment of redemption, in that the Japanese children are able to rescue her story from oblivion. By emphasizing their active involvement, ‘Hana’s Suitcase’ shows that children can play a positive role in shaping their world and responding to injustice — that they’re not just passive victims.”

Carol North, artistic director for Metro Theater, directs the cast of nine, which is led by Haruna Tsuchiya as Fumiko and Leah Schumacher as Hana. Also starring are Don Castro as Akira and Stephanie Kim as Maiko, two of Fumiko’s students; Nicholas Kryah as Karel Brady and George Brady, Hana’s father and older brother, respectively; and Stephanie Strohman as Marketa Brady, Hana’s mother. John Wolbers is the young George Brady. Beckah Voigt is featured in several roles including Michaela Hayek and Friedl Dicker-Brandeis. Eddie Webb performs triple duty as Vikto Rott, Uncle Ludvik and Kurt Kotouc.

“We are thrilled to be partnering with Edison Theatre to bring this powerful play to St. Louis audiences,” North says. “Emil Sher’s script weaves past and present in a seamless theatrical journey that takes us through the darkness of the Holocaust and into the light of hope. I’m so moved by Fumiko Ishioka’s quest to find answers for children who needed to know the truth of Hana’s story. She is my inspiration as we prepare Metro Theater Company’s production.”

“Hana’s Suitcase” debuts at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 11. Performances continue through Jan. 21 at 7:30 p.m. Fridays, 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. Saturdays, and 2 p.m. Sundays. Edison Theatre is located at 6445 Forsyth Blvd. Tickets range from $8 to $15 and are available through the Edison Theatre Box Office at (314) 935-6543; through all MetroTix outlets; and online at www.metrotix.com.

For more information, call (314) 935-6543 or visit www.edisontheatre.wustl.edu or www.metrotheatercompany.org.

Widely acclaimed

Originally published by Second Story Press, “Hana’s Suitcase” was named Book of the Year by the Canadian Library Association. Other honors include the National Jewish Book Award; the Canadian Jewish Book Award; the American Library Association’s Notable Book Award; the Canadian Children’s Book Center Choice Award; the Golden Oak Literacy Award; and the Ontario Library Association’s Silver Birch Award. Now in its 17th printing, it is available at bookstores nationwide.

Sher, a native of Montreal, has written professionally in a variety of genres, including stage plays, radio dramas, short fiction, essays and children’s television. His works include “Mourning Dove,” a radio play about a father who kills his severely disabled daughter, which he is currently adapting for the screen and stage.

Several of his essays have been anthologized and three of his radio plays were published in one volume titled “Making Waves.” “Café Olé,” a romantic comedy filmed in Montreal, was released in 2001. Other current projects include “Dylan Mazo,” a feature film with Italian director Antonio Baiocco; and “Beneath the Banyan Tree,” a movement-based play for young audiences, commissioned by Lata Pada’s Sampradaya Dance Company. His adaptation of “Hana’s Suitcase” received its world premiere in Toronto on March 4, 2006.

Metro Theater Company is nationally recognized as one of America’s finest and most innovative professional theaters for young people and families. Founded in 1973, the company has produced more than 29 original works for audiences totaling nearly two million people.

Metro Theater Company has toured to 40 states and appeared in international festivals in Canada, Italy, Japan and Taiwan. Thousands of school students benefit each year from touring performances and workshops conducted by Metro’s artists. Metro’s artists make theater arts alive and accessible to young people and adults, and assist educators in making learning more effective and engaging for their students.

Edison Theatre’s OVATIONS! Series serves both Washington University and the St. Louis community by providing the highest caliber national and international artists in music, dance and theater, performing new works as well as innovative interpretations of classical material not otherwise seen in St. Louis.

Focusing on presentations that are interdisciplinary, multicultural and/or experimental, Edison Theatre presents work intended to challenge, educate and inspire. Edison Theatre programs are made possible with support from the Missouri Arts Council, a state agency, and the Regional Arts Commission, St. Louis.

Editor’s note: High-resolution images are available upon request.