One-man Holocaust play, “Good Jew,” presented at Beth Tikvah

By Ida Margolis

On Oct. 30, Beth Tikvah of Naples hosted the highly regarded one-man play, “Good Jew.” Written by Frank Blocker and Murray Scott Changar, and produced by and starring Frank Blocker, the one-act play introduces the audience to Henryk Altman, a Holocaust survivor who relates his story with its triumphs and faults to an interviewer.

The story is based on Changar’s late father, who escaped the concentration camps of WWII multiple times and even worked for the Resistance. In the play, Altman laments, “Always … I feel like my life does not belong to me. It belongs to Germany still.”

Frank Blocker, Star of “Good Jew,” at Beth Tikvah with GenShoah members Yvonne and Joe Holtzman

Frank Blocker with GenShoah members Shelley Goodman and Betsy Dougatz

The performance was directed by award-winning New York casting and stage director Jamibeth Margolis. Jamibeth is the granddaughter of Holocaust survivors. The play is on its way to the 2022 United Solo Festival in New York.

Many thanks to Rabbi Amos Chorny and synagogue past-president Shelley Goodman for their efforts to bring this program to Naples. Thanks also to the audience for their excellent questions and positive reception, as well as their donations that will be sent to the Hurricane Ian Disaster Relief Fund.