Synopsis

Art, war, and the politics of culture collide in Sally Stubbs’ moving account of a family’s legacy of beauty and brutality. Anna, an established painter living in Canada, returns to Munich – the city she ran from decades earlier. As this poetic and powerful drama unfolds, Anna forces her family to answer tough questions about their past and the events of World War II. While her mother plays a private concert, history unravels, and Anna is confronted with a moral dilemma of her own. Inspired by factual events, Herr Beckmann’s People explores the question: How do we live with the choices we have made?

Premiere

Herr Beckmann’s People was developed and premiered as part of Flying Start, a partnership of Touchstone Theatre and Playwrights Theatre Centre giving a stage to new professional playwrights. The production was staged at Festival House in Vancouver, BC, and opened on June 11, 2010.  

Reviews

‘… (Herr Beckmann’s People) puts a movingly human face on personal entanglement in an evil regime.’

Colin Thomas, Georgia Straight

‘Like Anna, in the end, we realize that no one at that time was completely innocent. … A thought-provoking play sensitively performed by a strong cast, this is well worth seeing.’

Gillian Lockitch, Review from the House

‘… (Herr Beckmann’s People) creates empathy in those that will hopefully never have to make this choice and that is a very powerful tool. Congratulations to all involved in bringing this new work to life.’

Sean Tyson, Plank Magazine

‘This show is a profound act of healing for wounds long left open.’

Audience Member

‘… a compelling and complex drama.’

John Jane, Review Vancouver

‘… the truth lies not in the period piece … It lies within the human moments of hate, anger, and acceptance. That what was, is not. And what is, simply is. I congratulate the cast and the playwright, Sally Stubbs.’