Play about lesbian Holocaust survivor to premiere at Brighton Fringe

A new play about the extraordinary life of lesbian Holocaust survivor Margot Heuman will premiere to an online audience later this month as part of the Brighton Fringe.

Born in 1928 in Germany, Heuman survived Theresienstadt, Auschwitz, Neuengamme, and Bergen-Belsen, before being liberated by the British and later emigrating to the United States.

The play takes its text from interviews conducted by Warwick University historian Anna Hájková and offers “a poignant look at coming of age as a Jewish queer woman in the concentration camps”.

Still alive today, Heuman is “the first and probably only lesbian voice” to speak about her experience in the Holocaust, as she reflects on love, choices, sexual violence, sexual barter, hatred towards LGBTQ+ communities, survival.

Hájková said Heuman “reminds us of humanity within the society of Holocaust victims, but also of the stories that have been erased by homophobia”.

Actor Ayse Evans, who reads the testimony of Margot, said: “This is the queer story I never had growing up, but that I am so glad my daughter will have.”

Organisers say the play “offers a rare and important glimpse into queer life during the Holocaust, one of the most silenced and marginalized topics of this genocide”.

Brighton Fringe takes place over three days from 24-26 June, with the play premiering at 7.30pm.