Cheryl Eitman
I am Jewish and I have always had a special place in my heart for Holocaust survivors and their families. This production honors those who were lost by keeping their memories alive. One of my favorite things about being part of this production is hearing the stories Cathy discovered in her research.
The characters are based on real people. The lyrics are based on real letters and diaries that were found. I had a very dear friend who was a survivor. She came over for dinner one night and completely broke down and needed to leave when she saw that I served baked potatoes for dinner. She recalled being forced to walk 30 miles next to wagons carrying potatoes. If a potato dropped to the ground and someone picked it up, they were shot. We must never forget. Never again.
Harvey Bernstein
As a man of Jewish faith, I connect with the opera through the people in my life who were survivors or knew people that went through it. For instance, when I was a kid, my neighbor had a tattoo with a number on his arm. He explained what it meant.
I want the audience to remember that this happened and should never happen again.