Honoring the Past, Building a Bridge to the Future: Witness Theater

Stories are an integral part of what makes us human - they hold the power to connect individuals across communities, cultures, and generations.

The Holocaust is one of the most devastating events in human history. Its survivors have endured immense pain and suffering over their lifetimes. But out of this darkness comes a light – Witness Theater, an innovative intergenerational program connecting Holocaust survivors and high school students. Together, they explore issues of war, loss, and trauma through the lens of moving stories that serve as a bridge between generations.

Selfhelp’s Witness Theater Program is a unique program that pairs high school students with Holocaust survivors in order to elicit, expose, and memorialize their experiences. During weekly meetings with a trained drama therapist, group members share stories of survival and form meaningful relationships that dissolve barriers between generations. These powerful stories are shared with the public through a staged production featuring both student actors portraying survivor experiences and survivors narrating their own stories. When the performance ends, the audience takes its messages with them, and the script remains part of our collective recorded history.

“Witness Theater offers Holocaust survivors an opportunity to reflect on their past in a therapeutic process," says program director Anya Leybovitch. "It provides them with an outlet to tell their story in a meaningful way while at the same time giving younger generations an understanding of what it means to be a survivor."

Witness Theater serves as an important reminder that we must never forget our past – even when it is painful or difficult – if we are to build bridges between different generations and create lasting peace for future ones. In addition to being emotionally healing for all involved, Witness Theater encourages empathy, compassion, and understanding among its participants while promoting respect for diverse histories and cultures.

Witness Theater honors the past while building bridges to the future by providing opportunities for young people to learn from those who lived through some of history’s darkest moments.

The community is invited to bear witness to stories of survival in four performances in April and May: www.selfhelp.net/witness-theater.