Simon Wiesenthal was a Jewish Austrian Holocaust survivor who after the war made it his mission to hunt down Nazi war criminals who had escaped prosecution so that they could be brought to trial. He was determined and dogged and became known not only as a Nazi hunter but the Nazi hunter. During his lifetime he was nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize and was awarded an honorary knighthood by the British government.
Now his story is told in a one man play eponymously titled Wiesenthal written by American playwright Tom Dugan and performed by American actor Christopher C Gibbs. The framing device for the piece is that Wiesenthal is about to retire and he’s giving one last talk to a small audience in his Vienna office. The set is a simple one with a desk, some chairs, a few boxes containing his files and some other props. He addresses the audience directly telling his life story from a young man who studied architecture before the war, happily married and life seemed fine until Hitler came to power and everything changed. Wiesenthal was detained in various camps during the war but somehow survived, determined to find justice for those who had perpetrated the atrocities. In a very humble way and with great humility and humanity, Gibbs as Wiesenthal makes sure to tell us that it wasn’t just the six million Jews who were murdered by the Nazis but there were five million others who suffered the same fate. He tells us about his experiences during the war, how he was reconciled with his wife who he thought was dead and how he helped in finding Adolph Eichmann, one of the architects of solving the “Jewish problem” although it’s thought he may have exaggerated his part in Eichmann’s discovery and arrest. Along the way we meet various characters who played a part in his life and we get a feel for the man and his journey. It may seem dark and gloomy but Wiesenthal does have a sense of humour that shines though, telling us that he was once called “the Jewish James Bond”!
Christopher C Gibbs gives a fine performance as Wiesenthal even though with his tall, patrician bearing and full head of hair, he looks nothing like the real Wiesenthal who was bald and bulky; there’s even a photo of him in the programme for comparison. His performance as the Nazi hunter is excellent, engaging and believable – we just have to suspend belief regarding him not looking anything like the person he’s portraying.
The play itself tends to meander a bit, maybe because at the time its set, Wiesenthal is probably in his late eighties so he’s allowed to ramble. However as a piece of theatre, the times where the character stops telling his story to make phone calls to show that even in retirement, he’s still chasing Nazis pauses the narrative and takes the audience out of the moment. The other device that distracts a little, is that sometimes Gibbs acts out other characters which he does superbly and other times the characters are heard in voiceover which seems pointless. However the big problem with the production is the sound design. Including the aforementioned voiceovers, there’s some melancholic violin music as background to one or two emotional moments and there are various sound effects such as train sounds and everything is far too loud and it causes Gibbs to shout and fight with the background noise. The text is strong enough to work without these extraneous sounds and they could easily be done away with.
Whilst not a great play, Wiesenthal is an important one. Along with the many other plays and films of the past few years, the story of the Holocaust needs to keep being told. With Wiesenthal and most of the Holocaust survivors no longer around to remind us of the atrocities of the last world war, we must not forget. With the rise of extremists around the world across the political spectrum, the planet is teetering on the edge and we need to ensure that genocide is eradicated wherever it’s carried out. Hopefully plays like Wiesenthal will help by reminding us that horrendous events such as the Holocaust must never be repeated.
Review by Alan Fitter
Wiesenthal is based on the life of Simon Wiesenthal, who survived the Holocaust and devoted the rest of his life to bringing Nazi war criminals to justice. Filled with hope, humanity and humour, it is the true story of an ordinary man who did extraordinary things. Intelligent, funny, flawed and noble, Wiesenthal was a universal hero. His unbelievable dedication and tenacity over decades is honoured in this play. It takes place on his final day in his Vienna office in 2003.
Writer: Tom Dugan
Performer: Christopher C Gibbs
Director: Mark Liebert
Sound Designer: Josh Liebert
General Manager: Seabright Live
WIESENTHAL
King’s Head Theatre
Tuesday 3 to Sunday 15 September 2024
