KINDERTRANSPORT Opens Burning Coal's Second Stage 2013-14 Season Tonight

Big Wig Productions will team up with Burning Coal Theatre Company to present the North Carolina premiere of Diane Samuels' Kindertransport, directed by Brian Yandle, tonight, November 14 - 24, 2013 at Burning Coal's Murphey School Auditorium, 224 Polk Street, Raleigh. Tickets are $10 and may be obtained by calling 919.753.6626 or at www.burningcoal.org.

Between 1938 and the outbreak of World War II, thousands of Jewish children living in Germany were sent to Great Britain on the Kindertransport to adoptive, foreign parents. This move saved them from the concentration camps their biological parents would soon face. Diane Samuels' play offers deep insight into themes of abandonment, identity, survivors' guilt, and the effects of a traumatic past on those nearest to us. The story follows Eva, a nine-year old Kinder, and the effect her mother's fateful decision had on a generation of women.

Brian Yandle, who performed last year in Burning Coal's critically acclaimed Jailbait will direct a cast that includes Sharlene Thomas, Marleigh Purgar McDonald, Page Purgar, Mary Rowland, Maggie Flaugher and Eric Morales.

Diane Samuels is a playwright, author, teacher, and mother of two sons. She currently resides in London with her husband, Simon Garfield. Born in Liverpool in 1960, Diane Samuels worked as a drama teacher before becoming a full-time writer in 1992. She has published 15 plays for the stage, including Kindertransport, winner of the Verity Bargate Award (1992) and Push, winner of the Wellcome Trust Science on Stage and Screen Award (2001). Mrs. Samuels has also written several award-winning radio plays that have aired on BBC radio, including Whatever Happened to Janet and John, winner of the Radio Times Drama Award (1991).

Brian Yandle is an experienced actor who has performed in theatrical productions throughout the United States. He has also been a mainstage improviser with Bay Area Theatre Sports in San Francisco. Recent theater credits in Raleigh include Fuddy Meers at TIP, Jailbait at Burning Coal Theatre, and Circle Mirror Transformation at REP. He is a graduate of the University of South Carolina with a Bachelor of Arts in Theater, Speech, and Dance and a Master's Degree in Counseling. After more than 20 years of on-stage work, Mr. Yandle is stepping off stage as a first-time director. He is honored to make his directorial debut with this powerful and enduring story.

For further information about Kindertransport or Burning Coal Theatre Company, visit www.burningcoal.org.

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