In the first of her new series of think pieces, Judi Herman reflects on the season of remembrance

I hope readers will forgive me for subverting the words Ophelia speaks in her strangely lucid madness in Hamlet, for they are not all exhortations. But for me, "pray, love, remember" sums up this month’s season of shared remembrance and special anniversaries.

As well as the annual Armistice Day (11 Nov), to salute those who died in conflict, we also marked the fall of the Berlin wall on 9 November 1989, which coincided with Kristallnacht, the infamous ‘Night of Broken Glass’ that saw orchestrated violence against Jews across Germany in 1938. The commemorations continued with services at the Cenotaph in London and local war memorials across the country 10-11 November. Then on 17 November, the world remembered the Velvet Revolution, the fall of Communism in (the then) Czechoslovakia, 1989.

For me it has meant sharing collective acts of remembrance – the whole family wearing poppies (including the dog) at our local War Memorial on 10 November – and sharing pride that our rabbi and cantor concluded the commemoration with the priestly blessing. I sang in the synagogue choir at Kristallnacht and AJEX (Association of Jewish Ex Servicemen) services. I was moved by the horribly clear memories of a child survivor, just three years old during Kristallnacht, which were shared specially to introduce the Holocaust to grandchildren. I noted the dwindling number of men and women, in their 80s and 90s now, their medals proudly displayed on their chests at the AJEX Service. I was honoured to be invited to join them on the bimah (platform) before the open Ark of the Covenant (which houses the Torah scrolls), to read the words, "They shall not grow old as we that are left grow old". We wore our poppies until those AJEX members solemnly marched to the Cenotaph the following Sunday (16 Nov), as they continue to do each year.

The January issue of Jewish Renaissance will feature the Brundibár Festival, based in Newcastle, which begins on Holocaust Memorial Day (27 Jan). It is named for Hans Krása’s beautiful and defiant children’s opera, performed many times in the infamous holding camp Theresienstadt, in Nazi-occupied Czechoslovakia, by a succession of casts of the youngest internees. Most of them were deported to death camps or died from deprivation.

Connecting with the organisers, I found myself remembering one of the most remarkable individuals I’ve ever been privileged to meet, the Czech Jewish concert pianist and survivor, Alice Herz-Sommer, about whom I made radio programmes for the BBC World Service and Woman’s Hour. This valiant woman protected her little son Raphael through the years of their confinement, stoically coping with the devastation of losing her husband, who was marched away to his death. When I first met her in 2006 Alice, aged 103, was eager to share with me her pride in Raphael being cast in the key role of the Bird in Brundibár. She led a full and active life, playing the piano daily almost up to her death at the age of 111.

Nine years earlier, I had the joy of meeting Paula Salomon-Lindberg, doughty stepmother of the artist Charlotte Salomon. Charlotte died in Auschwitz in 1943 aged just 26, but not before she completed a series of 765 autobiographical gouaches she called Life? Or Theatre?, currently displayed at London’s Jewish Museum. Paula, a feted opera singer, had saved Charlotte’s father and herself from wartime deportation from Amsterdam, though she could not save Charlotte, who was captured in the South of France. When we met, Paula had just celebrated her 100th birthday and was holding court at Amsterdam’s Progressive Synagogue. She invited us to her apartment and it was like taking tea with royalty, surrounded by cards, paintings and floral tributes.

So pray, love and remember; for in this month of momentous anniversaries, what better way to pay tribute.

By Judi Herman

Header photo: Armistice Day celebrations in Philadelphia, PA, 11 November 1918 © Library Company of Philadelphia

Brundibár's Holocaust Memorial Day Fundraising Concert takes place Sunday 24 November. 7.30pm. FREE (donations welcomed). St James' & St Basil's Church, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE4 9EJ.
Brundibár Arts Festival runs Monday 27 January – Tuesday 4 February. Various times, prices and venues in Newcastle upon Tyne and Gateshead.

For further info see JR listings or visit www.brundibarartsfestival.com.