‘Wiesenthal: ‘ One-Man Show, Coming To Zieterion

In my view, Simon Wiesenthal may have been one of the most remarkable men of the 20th century.

He was born in 1908 in Ukraine.  At the start of World War II, Wiesenthal and other members of his family were forced into Nazi labor camps.  In all, 89 members of his family were killed during the Holocaust, but somehow, Simon and his wife survived. Wiesenthal was liberated by American troops in May 1945.  At the time of his liberation, he weighed 90 lbs.

After the war, Wiesenthal became an international figure, identifying and helping authorities bring to justice Nazis who fled Germany after the fighting.  Wiesenthal persisted in his work for decades, even when the Allies tired of putting war criminals on trial.  Sometimes criticized for overstating the horrors he faced during the Holocaust or being overzealous in the pursuit of Nazis, Wiesenthal continued his life's work into the 1990s.  He died in 2005 at the age of 96.

Wiesenthal's extraordinary life comes alive on April 16 at 8 PM at the Zeiterion Performing Arts Center. A one-man show, Wiesenthal, starring Tom Duggan, has been described as "uplifting and highly entertaining."  It's a history lesson on stage about a man who felt strongly that survivors of the Holocaust must continue to hunt for Nazi war criminals as a way to memorialize the six million Jews that had been lost.

Also on the 16th will be an open discussion on the book, Branded On My Arm And In My Soul written by Abraham Landau of New Bedford, also a Holocaust survivor.  The discussion begins at 6 PM at the "Z" and is free and open to the public.