A New Play, “Confessions of Butterfly: An Evening with Janus Koczak” Speaks to the Human Soul

Professor Joe Goldblatt

Many summers ago I found myself in Warsaw, Poland walking through the ghetto in the center of the city where hundreds of thousands of Jewish people were restrained during the World War II. As a member of the Jewish people I felt it was my duty to find out what happened to my ancestors so I hired a taxi to drive me to the nearest concentration camp which had become a memorial site.

The car journey was very beautiful and later I learned that when most children from the Warsaw ghetto were shipped to Treblinka they looked out of the cracks in the doors on the train and saw beautiful forests and believed they were going on a holiday to a relaxing and healthy summer camp.

Upon arrival I looked for buildings or other examples of the killing machine the Nazis had created to exterminate the Jewish people along with Roma gypsies, homosexuals, and others. There was nothing to be see except for thousands of small rocks scattered across the vast estate. Each stone contained the name of a town or village where those who perished in Treblinka had come from.

Perhaps that is why when I witnessed the theatrical triumph of Jonathan Salt in his play “Confessions of a Butterfly: An Evening with Janus Korczak” I was so deeply moved by his portrayal of the doctor who was in charge of the medical care of hundreds of children at an orphanage in the Warsaw ghetto. Korczak, who had no children of his own, became the “Papa” to his young patients and was responsible for their well being until the Nazis further intervened and they were marched to their death with Korczak gently holding their tiny hands.

The play is set in the doctor’s sleeping room and the settings and props created an immediate ambience of turmoil, struggle, and yet the doctor finds small moments of comfort from something as simple as the calories he consumes from a tiny daily ration of vodka. As Korczak, the distinguished actor and Peterborugh school teacher Jonathan Salt does not portray the doctor, rather, he inhabits his soul in such an intimate and profound manner that the audience feel as though within a few minutes in his presence they actually intimately know and admire this complex man.

Throughout the performance, the use of lighting such as red flashes for gun shots and sound effects and the recorded sound of children’s voices, leaves the audience silently gasping as they recognise that they are not only witnessing a dark history but may also be experiencing a small moment of hope through the bravery and dedication of the good doctor.

As today we witness onlookers turn up and observe the rioting and violence of others in England this play reminds us that in World War II as Korczak led his children to the trains that would take them to their inevitable deaths, many others also turned up, observed, and did nothing to stop the evil they witnessed.

This play should be seen by every high school student throughout the world as it is a very effective way to remind others that one individual with integrity and conscience may indeed leave a lasting impact upon the world they inhabit. Thanks in large part to Jonathan Salt’s talent and inspired production, our souls were elevated to a higher level of awareness and compassion.

Although in my lifetime I shall not return to Treblinka, I believe that having seen this production with Mr Salt inhabiting Janus Koczak deepened and strengthenedever present my soul’s ability a create a create a much greater capacity for love and understanding to combat the forces of evil within our troubled world.

The production is in an intimate venue at Greenside Venue and tickets may be obtained here https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/confessions-of-a-butterfly-an-evening-with-janusz-korczak

Professor Joe Goldblatt is Chair of the Edinburgh Interfaith Association and is Emeritus Professor of Planned Events at Queen Margaret University in Edinburgh, Scotland. His views are his own. For more information about his views visit www.joegoldblatt.scot