Children’s Voices: From the Holocaust to Darfur

Join us at the Bowen-Thompson Student Union Theatre October 5 at 6:00 pm or October 6 at 8:00 pm for a special presentation by Buddy Elias, the First Cousin of Anne Frank, the BGSU Women's Chorus, and students from the Department of Theatre and Film.  Both evenings are free of charge and open to the general public.  Conference participants are encouraged to attend a reception in their honor on Thursday at 7:00 pm as outlined on the program and to attend the Friday night performance of Children's Voices.

Bernard Elias

Bernard Elias, the multi-talented European actor, was Anne Frank's first cousin. He was born in Frankfurt, Germany. Although others call him “Buddy,” Anne Frank always referred to him as Bernd.

Mr. Elias moved to Switzerland before Hitler came to power. He finished his schooling there and had his first acting experience on the Swiss stage. He saw Anne Frank for the last time in 1938, in the Swiss Alps.

Mr. Elias joined an English and Danish ice show in 1947 then joined the American "Holiday on Ice" in 1949. He spent eleven years touring with  ”Holiday on Ice.” His engagements included a guest performance with the Sonja Henie ice show during the coronation of Queen Elizabeth in 1953.

Mr. Elias returned to the stage in 1961. He performed in many leading roles on stage and screen, mainly in Germany and Switzerland. In 1979 he starred in "The Canterbury Tales" at the Shaftesbury Theater in London. Mr. Elias has also performed on French television and at the Festivals in Aix en Provence and Salzburg.

While continuing his acting career, Mr. Elias now serves as the President of the Anne Frank Foundation. This organization is the heir and conservator of the estates of Otto and Anne Frank. This foundation promotes charitable work and plays a social and cultural role in the spirit of Anne Frank. Mr. Elias has recently accepted a leading role in one of Germany's television comedy series and he has also been cast in a television production about right wing terror.

BGSU Women’s Chorus

The BGSU Women's Chorus under the direction of Sandra Frey Stegman will be performing settings of five poems written by children of the Terezin concentration camp.  The work, "I Never Saw Another Butterfly" by Joel Hardyk, will be enhanced by the projection of drawings of children from Terezin.  The Women's Chorus is comprised of women from various University degree programs.  They perform both on and off campus and have appeared at state music conventions, on music series, and other special events.

Department of Theatre and Film

The Students from the Department of Theatre and Film at Bowling Green State University will be reciting dramatic readings from Anne Frank’s Diary and “I Never Saw Another Butterfly.” The Department of Theatre and Film offers students exciting and creative classroom and production opportunities in the areas of acting, directing, film production, design and technical theatre, theatre for young audiences, musical theatre, puppetry, arts management and performance studies. Students participate in our active production program each year, including children's theatre, classical drama and contemporary scripts, ensemble and Broadway musicals, original works and experimental stagings.

Hosted by: BGeXperience

BGeXperience is the University's values program. This most prominent educational program is designed to help all first-year students make a successful transition to college and jump start their college career. Through the BGeXperience values courses students develop relationships that connect them to the BGSU community, and they begin to develop skills that prepare them to succeed academically.