Address unknown

By Paul Haist

Every weekday matinee of the Readers Theatre Repertory production of the Holocaust drama "Address Unknown" was booked by local school groups.

The play, adapted from Portland native Katherine Kressman Taylor's 1938 book of the same name, was presented at the Portland Center for the Performing Arts April 20-29 in cooperation with the Oregon Holocaust Resource Center. The play dates included school-day matinees April 24-26.

"All student matinees were full," said OHRC President Fern Winkler Schlesinger.

Students came from public and private middle and high schools in and around Portland and from communities as far away as Turner and Lebanon to watch the story of two German art dealers, partners—one Jewish, the other a non-Jew—working together during the rise of Germany's Nazi party.

"We have filled every matinee with students," said Schlesinger. "That says a lot for the teaching staffs who understand the importance of this."

Schlesinger said more than 650 young people attended the school-day performances.

A benefit premier April 19 preceded the public run of the play. Many Holocaust survivors and children of survivors attended.

Their presence led to an emotional and insightful discussion in the theater following the play. Audience members, the two cast members—Tobias Andersen and Michael Mendelson, Director Mary McDonald-Lewis and event presenting sponsor Miriam Greenstein, herself a Holocaust survivor, probed what motivated the two characters.

Several of the survivors drew on their Holocaust experience to enrich the discussion.

The so-called talkback sessions were part of every performance of "Address Unknown." At least one Holocaust survivor or child of a survivor was present at every performance.

"Now that we are inundated with Holocaust denial," said Schlesinger, pointing especially to the government of Iran and current events in England and France, "it is important for the community to be reminded of the impact of the Holocaust."

The play, she said, "talks about the fear of that time, but it's the same today. If we can educate our kids and adults to understand the similarities of then and now, we can help prevent that from happening again."

The idea to present "Address Unknown" as a fully staged production arose from its presentation last fall only as a public reading.

Andersen and Mendelson also performed in that readers theater production.

Andersen, the artistic director of Mount Hood Repertory Theatre Company, told McDonald, the co-artistic director of Readers Theatre Repertory, that he wanted to see the work fully staged. McDonald wondered if the OHRC would be interested in partnering in the project.

That led to a meeting involving Andersen, Mendelson, McDonald and Schlesinger.

Schlesinger took the idea to the OHRC Executive Board.

After weighing the financial aspects of their participation, "the board decided we should definitely stage this," said Schlesinger.

Schlesinger credited past OHRC President Greenstein for facilitating the center's financial commitment to the project.

Greenstein provides annual financial support for the Oregon Holocaust Memorial in Washington Park. This year, that support was redirected to the production of "Address Unknown." The gift was reimbursed and eventually directed to its original destination, the Holocaust Memorial, from proceeds of the play.

"Miriam did a very nice thing," said Schlesinger. Greenstein's support covered about 50 percent of the production costs, according to Schlesinger. OHRC provided the balance.

OHRC and Readers Theatre Repertory were to share box-office revenue after all OHRC costs were reimbursed.

The benefit premier that preceded the public run of the play raised about $20,000, according to Schesinger.

The evening began with music in the lobby, and a cocktail hour at which audience members had the opportunity to mingle and speak with many Holocaust survivors.