A one-woman play by David Schechter, based on the diaries of Hannah Senesh.
This one-woman play tells the true story of Hannah Senesh, a young Jewish woman who fled Hungary in 1939 for British Mandate Palestine and later volunteered for a secret mission to rescue Jews from Nazi-occupied Europe. As a member of the Haganah and later the Special Operations Executive, she parachuted behind enemy lines, only to be captured in her homeland. Through dramatized excerpts of her diary and poems, the play chronicles her extraordinary courage and unwavering commitment to resistance in the face of hatred and persecution.
The work is written and directed by David Schechter, and developed in collaboration with Lori Wilner. It draws heavily from Hannah Senesh’s own words, as translated by Marta Cohn and Peter Hay, with original music composed and arranged by Steven Lutvak (A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder). Originally staged in 2019, the current revival continues to center a solo performance that combines historical narrative, poetic monologue, and subtle musical elements.
Produced by National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene, the play runs in English at Theatre Row – Theatre Three. Known for its dedication to preserving Jewish heritage through performing arts, the company situates Hannah Senesh within a broader mission of honoring cultural memory and legacy through intimate, historically grounded productions.