TAP DANCING THROUGH AUSCHWITZ to Return to the Boca Black Box Theater in April

"Tap Dancing Through Auschwitz" is set to return to the Boca Black Box Theater in West Boca Raton Wednesday, April 26th & Thursday, April 27th at 8 p.m. Presented by Big Little Productions, "Tap Dancing Through Auschwitz" will be staged in collaboration with BARCLAY Performing Arts, and under the direction of its artistic director Christine Barclay.

Written by Boca Raton native Tyler Ellman, "Tap Dancing Through Auschwitz" follows five high school seniors as they visit the infamous concentration camp Auschwitz, on a trip known as The March of the Living. In the midst of their own life transitions, the teens witness the horrors of their ancestors' past. This coming-of-age story shows the inevitable relationship between light and darkness, suffering and hope, and misery and faith.

"Tap Dancing Through Auschwitz" is an edgy yet eye-opening experience that diverges from the classroom setting, incorporating a racy and colloquial dialogue that creates a familiarity with young audiences.

The play is based on Ellman's own personal experience while on The March of the Living trip in 2013, where thousands of Jewish teens from around the world gather on Yom HaShoah (Holocaust Remembrance Day) to march from Auschwitz I to Auschwitz II Birkenau. As a theatermaker and storyteller, Ellman hopes to channel his experiences to form a bridge between the younger generation and the dark history of the past, which cannot be ignored.

Ellman comments, "I felt like a fish in a fishbowl... How can someone hate me so much for me just being who I am? I never wanted anyone to feel like that... It's about antisemitism but it's also about universally how can we embrace each other and learn to love, accept, tolerate, and embrace that what makes us different is what makes us human."

This production will coincide with Genocide Awareness Month and will take place 10 days after Yom HaShoah. Ellman is partnering with the Boca Raton Interfaith Youth Association by donating a portion of the proceeds to their organization, with the hopes of enriching solidarity, education, and coexistence within the youth of the South Florida interfaith community.

Tickets are $27 - $37. Student tickets are available for $15 at the door, and a 10% discount can be applied for groups of 10+. Tickets can be purchased in advance at barclayperformingarts.com and bocablackbox.com or by contacting 561-483-9036 at the Boca Black Box Theater Box Office, 8221 Glades Road, Boca Raton, FL 33434.