This year, TDChristian’s ShowPro Drama class is putting on the play The Diary of Anne Frank, involving cooperation and collaboration among many people. I am one of two actors who will play Anne.
Anne Frank was a 13-year-old Jewish girl when she went into hiding during World War II. For two years, she kept a diary; our class has been given the opportunity to act out Anne’s experiences and her perspective of the world as she documented them. To begin, we discussed the people who were in hiding with Anne, and her perception of each one. This helped us form an idea of what the play is about.

In class we also work on theatre skills, such as projecting our voices, saying lines as we follow our stage directions, and helping with backstage roles that suit our interests. These include costumes, hair and makeup, props, and set design. There is something for everyone.
One thing I find special about The Diary of Anne Frank is the intentional focus on who Anne was, as well as her view of the people and the world around her. Learning that six million Jews were murdered doesn’t feel real until I realize that each of those people had lives, families that they loved, and daily struggles to overcome, just like Anne.
In her diary, Anne wrote, “I want to go on living even after my death! And therefore, I am grateful to God for this gift, this possibility of developing myself and of writing, of expressing all that is in me.” She certainly did go on living, and not just as a documentation of war: Anne’s hopefulness impacts and inspires anyone who chooses to read her story. Her complex thoughts and feelings sometimes seem impossible for me to wrap my mind around. But I can try!
Anne also says, “In spite of everything, I still believe that people are really good at heart.” Trying to see the good in people who have hurt me is a struggle. Yet Anne, in the middle of a mass murder, still found ways to have faith in each person.
I hope that you will enjoy the play as much as we will enjoy putting it on for you.
Author Info: Shekhinah Solski is a thoughtful and talented Grade 10 student who will play Anne in one of two casts for this year’s main stage play.