New Anne Frank stage play in development

For the first time passages from Anne Frank's diary will be literally cited on stage, in a new play, which premieres on May 8 in Amsterdam, announced editor Theu Boermans Wednesday. Rosa da Silva will play the role of Anne. An American couple wrote a play about Anne in the fifties, but they didn't have access to the diaries.

The Anne Frank foundation in Basel, founded by Otto Frank, Anne's father, initiated the theater production and gave permission to use citations from Anne's diary. Anne wrote the diary while staying in a safehouse on the Prinsengracht in Amsterdam during World War II. A new theater with room for 1,100 people will be built in the western harbor region of Amsterdam. 500 square meters of mobile screens will create a grand decor to recreate Anne's reality. Foreign visitors will be able to pick up on the text by tablets that will be provided with the translation or by headphones. The piece is translated in 7 different languages.