"The stirring two-act drama...juggles the sequence of events laid out in the book... Sher has penned a contemporary Holocaust story that continually crosses paths with the tragic past... To balance the fresh faces of so many children on stage, Sher marches out disturbing, ghost-like characters outfitted with expressionless masks featuring hollowed out eyes... The storytelling is so captivating that one often forgets these are actors on stage... History dictates the brutal ending for Hana and her parents. But Sher rescues the story by planting hope for a better future. Akira vows "to find a way out of the sadness" and tell all Japanese children about Hana through a play. That sets the stage for an inspiring parting image of Maiko pretending to be the Jewish girl, riding her scooter just as Hana did at the beginning." |
