What was it like to be among the first to tell the story of The Diary of Anne Frank before it was known? The play debuted on Broadway in 1955, and later toured the country, eventually becoming one of the most influential plays of the 20thcentury. It introduced millions of Americans to the Holocaust and its victims. Eva Rubinstein and Steve Press, who played Margot Frank and Peter Van Daan in the original Broadway production, Pauline Hahn, who played Anne Frank in a 1958 American tour, and Peter Dan Levin who originated the role of Peter Van Daan on Broadway will join the Museum for a panel conversation. They will discuss how the play changed their lives, what it meant to them as people, creators, and actors, how is affected their careers, the story’s legacy, and more.
Using archival material and interviews with surviving cast and crew members, the Forward executive editor Adam Langer created a podcast to tell a story that’s never been told. Langer will moderate this conversation, which marks the first time these artists have appeared onstage together in nearly 70 years.
Adam Langer is a journalist, editor, podcast producer, and the author of a memoir and six novels, including Cyclorama, The Washington Story, Ellington Boulevard, The Thieves of Manhattan, The Salinger Contract, and the internationally best-selling novel Crossing California. Formerly a senior editor at Book Magazine and a frequent contributor to the New York Times, he currently serves as Executive Editor at the Forward.