I was excited to go see Toronto playwright Hannah Moscovitch’s highly revered East of Berlin, currently playing at Fernwood indie theatre Theatre Inconnu. I was excited because, like many people, I have a curiosity with World War II, a curiosity that dances between sick fascination and total horror. The term “east of Berlin” was actually a Nazi euphemism for deporting Jews to death camps, so Moscovitch using it to title her work suggests a piece of writing that will leave one feeling exposed to the hellish endurance of that time. What Moscovitch explores in East of Berlin is the effects that Auschwitz has on the generation after: the children of those who lived through the Holocaust first-hand.
The performance begins with the protagonist, Rudi (James Johnson), pacing in dim lighting, obviously contemplating serious issues as he chain smokes. He addresses the audience as if they are his psychiatrist; he’s unloading his pain and his inherited guilt about his father’s involvement in the war as a doctor for the SS. This guilt has basically overtaken his life; he has done little with himself because of it. Although Rudi is obviously challenged by his father’s past, he also has a gift for humour, which he uses to attempt to get the validation he so desperately wants.
Rudi is joined on stage by his friend and fellow German, Hermann (MJ Connelly), as well as Sarah (Melissa Blank), who Rudi meets in West Berlin. Sarah is Jewish and the daughter of a war camp survivor. Sarah is also looking for answers, and a romance blossoms between her and Rudi, leaving Sarah confused about their obvious differences and Rudi determined to settle down regardless of them, sure that this is the answer he desires: redemption and forgiveness through love.
I left the performance feeling moved and grateful. Moved because of the raw emotion that was displayed by all the actors, and grateful for being able to go through life without Auschwitz being a part of it. Theatre Inconnu has outdone itself with a performance about people who have been through the horror of the Third Reich and come out the other side. East of Berlin touches the soul and brings the past to life.
East of Berlin
Various days and times, until Saturday, May 21
$10 student ticket, Theatre Inconnu, 1923 Fernwood
theatreinconnu.com