Legacy is no comedic romp or romantic dirge; it is a play about survival during the Holocaust when the world as many Europeans knew it was permanently and catastrophically altered. For Voice Theatre’s Artistic Director Shauna Kanter, the play is a reminder to audience members that even during a divisive political time, a time when “so many feel they don’t have any power… Legacy tells another story.”

Kanter also believes that similar restrictions are placed on people now as there were on people nearly 100 years ago when this story takes place. She mentioned “banning the press, book burning, invading other countries, blaming immigrants, economic realities and inflation are all fodder for dictatorship much like Germany’s.”

The play begins in 1968 as David, on his deathbed, reveals a vague statement to his daughter Sarah that she peels back the layers of after his passing. The audience is then transported to 1937, where David becomes the totemic figure in a narrative that involves harboring and saving the lives of individuals facing persecution as they fight back against the brewing storm that is the Third Reich.

Despite eventually finding heroism within himself, David’s path towards his own legacy happens through a fight against his own will, and fear, of the consequences. It’s his wife, in the end, who forces him to take action.

“The story is that one person can make a difference … you don’t have to be a superhero to do something courageous that makes a difference in our world,” Kanter said.

In preparing for the heavy subject matter in this play, the Voice Theatre team studied the experience of two German nationals whose families had lived through the Holocaust and fighting in World War II for the Germans, as well as by watching numerous documentaries and reading through lengthy historical texts on this time period.

Kanter admitted that, before she wrote this play, she “didn’t know much about this period of history at all,” but after visiting Germany several times and being introduced to people who lived during this time, she began to establish a background for what eventually became Legacy.

To further connect with the community about the play, Kanter is conducting workshops and lectures at Kingston High School with local Holocaust survivor Tibor Spitz, who recently celebrated his 97th birthday.

Joining the production is live music by Margot Leverett, a founding member of the iconic East Village Klezmer band The Klezmatics who now lives in Kingston and has formerly performed in the show in New York City.

The show, Kanter said, is very “visual” and “visceral” with live projections displayed and plenty of singing from the actors involved.

Legacy has stepped foot on international stages – from around the country to abroad in Germany, France and the United Kingdom – and will now premiere for the first time in the Hudson Valley. Voice Theatre has been around since 1987. It’s had a homebase across the state and abroad, but these past few years they’ve found a new home in Kingston.

“Kingston has been a good home for our productions,” Kanter said, who mentioned that Voice Theatre is also “the only professional theatre company in Kingston.” They proudly hire professional, union actors and pay them accordingly. “This is not community theater,” she said.

Rehearsals are currently underway for Legacy, which runs from Nov. 12-21. Showtimes are Thursday, Nov. 12 from 7-9 p.m., Saturday, Nov. 14 from 2-4 p.m. and again from 7-9 p.m., then Thursday, Nov. 19 from 7-9 p.m., Friday, Nov. 20 from 7-9 p.m., and on Saturday, Nov. 20, with a 2-4 p.m. matinee and again from 7-9 p.m.

Tickets to the show, located at Bethany Hall at Old Dutch Church, 272 Wall St., are $37 for general admission and $25 for seniors and students. There is limited seating available. Tickets can be purchased here. Learn more about the play’s actors here, and about Voice Theatre here.