When I was in middle school, I remember being assigned “A Diary of a Young Girl: Anne Frank”. Being a 13 year old boy, I didn’t come to appreciate it as I do now. Recently, I read the Definitive Version of the diary which included thirty percent more diary entries than the version most people have read. I hadn’t realized how much of her daily struggles with her family and her thoughts on sexuality had been removed from the original manuscript. Understandably, it wasn’t proper to discuss sexuality or to talk badly of your parents when it was first published. However, when I read this version, a lot of that was in there which really opened my eyes to who Anne really was. It made her more of a real person. I remember reading the original and thinking that this was a girl who was perfect and could do no wrong, when in reality, she was a very normal teenager who dealt with normal teenager issues and happened to express those issues in her diary.
 
I can’t even imagine what it was like not being able to leave the Annex. To have to be around the same people every single day and night. The thought that if you have an argument with someone, you can’t get away from them, and there’s really no place for you to be alone. No privacy. And at the same time living in constant fear, and any noise you hear outside creates instant paranoia. How incredibly brave these people were.
 
During our Table Read of the play, “The Diary of Anne Frank”, a question came up that really made people think. Miep was a woman who helped them all with bringing food and other necessities along with several other people. They risked their lives for Anne and the rest of them on a regular basis. The question that was brought up was: If you were in that situation, where you had to decide if you would risk your life to help others, would you? All of us said that we would hope we would, but we really dont know for sure. When actually faced with that danger, would we find the courage to help and put others before ourselves? It’s a question we continue to ponder. They didn’t consider themselves heroes; they were doing what they felt was right. And doing what you feel is right, could help others in return.
 
-Kevin Wiczer, Director

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