An inspiring story of love and loss . . . hope and longing . . . and ultimately, renewal. 

This powerful triple narrative takes the audience on a single journey in three perspectives, as a young adoptee searches for her identity and answers to questions of her Jewish – African American heritage, while her biological mother and grandmother receive the reunion they had long hoped for. 

​“A compelling, fascinating, and heartfelt journey of three generations of Jewish women.” Pamela Robinson

Written by Johanna Specktor Dey, Klara Firestone and Renee Firestone • Directed by Johanna Specktor Dey and Jon Kean

“I was struck by how brave these women were, to share their difficult story with an audience - and they didn’t hold back!  It was so authentic and moving to see how people can lose each other and then reconnect…it was inspiring.” Karen Marcco

​Los Angeles native, Johanna Specktor Dey, is a mother of three, nurse, comedienne, story teller, and singer/song writer who's made her home in Cleveland, Ohio for the past 17 years.  Through the use of her personal narrative she seeks to inspire people, most especially children, to cultivate self reflection and be fearless in speaking their truth. Her life has been one in which she has never stopped seeking, learning, and considers raising her children and making people laugh wherever she has been, her greatest achievements. 

​Holocaust survivor, Renee Firestone, came to the United States in 1948 with her husband, Bernard, (also a survivor) and an 11 month old baby. Soon after, they moved to Los Angeles. Hoping to leave behind the memories of losing her parents and little sister Klara at the hands of the murderous Nazis in Auschwitz-Birkenau, Renee began to work in the fashion industry, eventually becoming one of the most famous fashion designers in the U.S. In 1977 she was contacted by Rabbi Cooper of the Simon Wiesenthal Center telling her they were building a new Holocaust Museum in Los Angeles and were looking for survivors to tell their stories. Reluctantly, Renee began to speak. She later decided to leave her successful business and devote her life to speaking full time. She has since become one of the most recognized public speakers on the Holocaust and genocide, working tirelessly to spread the message of tolerance and respect around the world. Renee recently celebrated her 93rd birthday.

​Klara Firestone began her professional training in the entertainment industry at the tender age of 2-1/2 years of age training in ballet with the Lester Horton Dance Company and the legendary Carmen de Lavallade. She went on to study ballet and jazz at Eugene Loring's American School of Dance in Los Angeles. A back injury in her teen years curtailed any hopes of a professional career in dance. In addition to dance, Klara received acting training and appeared briefly in television as a child actress. After high school, Klara went on to have a very successful 31 year career as a paralegal before returning to school in her 50's to complete her Masters in Clinical Psychology, focusing on treating two unique groups . . . children of Holocaust survivors and the transgender community, both trauma affected populations. Klara is the daughter of two Holocaust survivor parents. Throughout her life, Klara took the lead from her parents and devoted a majority of her time to community service . . . as a Candy Striper, as a Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA), as the founder and president of Second Generation, an organization devoted to the needs of children of Holocaust survivors, as an interviewer for Steven Spielberg's Shoah Foundation, and as a member of the boards of several Holocaust related organizations including the Los Angeles Museum of the Holocaust and Generations of the Shoah International. Klara has received numerous awards for her community service. She was honored in April of 2013 at the California State Assembly, was a featured speaker at the City of Los Angeles' annual City-Wide Holocaust commemorations in 2004 and 2015, she was a featured speaker in 2015 before the Los Angeles City Council at their annual Holocaust commemoration, and finally, in September of 2015, Klara was invited to testify before a subcommittee of the House Foreign Affairs Committee on the issues and needs of the Second Generation community.

Renee and Klara recently appeared in the Los Angeles theatrical release of The Last Laugh, an award winning documentary by Fern Pearlstein which explores the relationship of humor to the Holocaust and the taboos surrounding who can say what . . . and when.  Additionally, Renee is featured in "After Auschwitz: The Story of Liberation”, the sequel to the widely popular “Swimming in Auschwitz", which is currently making the rounds of the film festivals.

Saturday, June 23, 2018 at 8:00pm

General Admission: $18
Proceeds support the Santa Monica Playhouse Jewish Heritage Project

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