ROSENBAUM'S RESCUE Comes To Park Theatre

Casting has been announced for Rosenbaum's Rescue, the World Premiere play exploring the true story of how over 7,000 Danish Jews managed to escape the Nazi occupation in 1943. Starring Olivier Award-winner David Bamber, Neil McCaul, Dorothea Myer-Bennett and Julia Swift, the production unearths new accounts behind one of history's most compelling mysteries. Directed by Kate Fahy and written by A. Bodin Saphir, the official press night at Park Theatre will be Tuesday 15 Jan, 7pm.

October, 1943. Seven and a half thousand Jews flee Denmark in fishermen's boats, crossing the water to Sweden and to safety from the occupying Nazi regime. To some, a miracle rescue of biblical proportions. To others, the question remains: how did thousands of Jews slip through the grasp of the most powerful war machine ever assembled?

Hanukkah, 2001. At a remote home on the snowy Danish coast, it's time for two old friends to bury the hatchet. Lars and Abraham have not seen eye to eye for decades, but old tensions refuse to thaw as Lars' relentless pursuit of the truth concerning the flight of Danish Jews during WWII challenges Abraham's faith, patience and memories. And when an old secret surfaces and threatens the very foundation of their relationship, fact starts to blur with fiction.

Playwright A. Bodin Saphir said:

" 'Rosenbaum's Rescue' is inspired by my grandparents' story of escape from Nazi occupied Denmark. Although he rarely talked about it, my grandfather was witness to a moment in history that contemporary historians now believe to be an important piece in the puzzle to understand why the 'rescue' of the Danish Jews was so successful and who was responsible for its success.

Armed with a perspective and information unavailable to their predecessors, a new generation of Danish historians are re-examining that 'Miracle Rescue' and their conclusions have proven shocking. This play is a testament to the evolution of that narrative from a black and white fairytale to a more complex, and in many ways, a more profound truth of a thousand greys. And although my grandfather found it difficult to speak of that time, I feel that now his story has finally been heard."

Olivier Award-winning actor David Bamber plays Abraham. David's stage credits include: Communicating Doors (Menier Chocolate Factory), Harvey (UK Tour/Theatre Royal Haymarket), The Glee Club (Bush & Duchess Theatre), Three Birds Alighting on a Field (Royal Court Theatre), Search & Destroy, Byrthrite, Billy Karate, My Night with Reg (Best Actor Olivier Award 1995 - Royal Court), Betty Blue Eyes (Novello Theatre) and The Oresteia, The Long Way Round, Hamlet, Racing Demon, Wind in the Willows, Troilus and Cressida, Merchant of Venice & Honk (National Theatre). His recent screen credits include: The Darkest Hour, Borg Vs McEnroe, Mad to be Normal, Queens of Mystery (Acorn), Gunpowder (BBC), Trust (FX Productions), Victoria (ITV), Silent Witness (BBC), Call the Midwife (BBC), A Very English Scandal (BBC), Snatch (AMC), Tina & Bobby (ITV), Camping (Sky Atlantic), Quacks (BBC), Death in Paradise (BBC), Doctor Who (BBC), Father Brown (BBC) & What Remains (BBC).

Neil McCaul plays Lars. His stage credits include: The Other Place (Park Theatre), Fatherland (Lyric Hammersmith, Manchester Royal Exchange), After Electra (Theatre Royal Plymouth/ Tricycle Theatre), Guys and Dolls (Chichester Festival Theatre), Calendar Girls (Noel Coward Theatre), Oedipus, Accomplices (National Theatre), Mr England (Crucible Theatre), Merchant of Venice, Trelawney Of The Wells (Old Vic), Privates On Parade (Piccadilly Theatre), Guys and Dolls (Savoy Theatre/ Chichester Theatre) and Soho Cinders (Soho Theatre). His TV credits include: Benidorm, Midsomer Murders, Dark Matter, Doctors, Foyle's War, Holby City, Blue Murder, Most Mysterious Murders, Nostradamus, Fifty Five Degrees North, Crossroads, EastEnders, Hearts and Bones, Lock Stock, People Like Us, Where the Heart is (series 3), A Wing and a Prayer, Tandem, Ruth Rendell: Road Rage, Comedy Nation, Does China Exist? and the Father Ted Christmas Special.

Dorothea Myer-Bennett plays Eva. Her theatre credits include: Holy Sh*t (Kiln Theatre), The Winslow Boy (Chichester Festival Theatre/Birmingham Rep/UK Tour), The Lottery of Love, The Philanderer (Orange Tree), The Merchant of Venice (Shakespeare's Globe/World Tour), Pericles (Shakespeare's Globe), Richard III, Uncle Vanya (West Yorkshire Playhouse), This Was A Man (Finborough Theatre), As You Like It, Arcadia, Two Gentlemen of Verona, Richard III, The Misanthrope, Comedy of Errors, King Lear and The Cherry Orchard (Tobacco Factory). Her TV credits include: Holby City (BBC), Jude the Obscure, Dead Man Talking (BBC) and Plastic People (Green Dot).

Julia Swift plays Sara. Her theatre credits include: Philadelphia Here I Come and Orpheus Descending (Donmar Warehouse), Revelations (Comedy Theatre), Broken Glass (National Theatre), Royal Borough and Ambulance (Royal Court), The German Connection (Young Vic), The Relapse (Old Vic Theatre) and Two Gentlemen of Verona & All's Well That End's Well (Royal Shakespeare Company). Her TV credits include: Doctors (BBC), Casualty (BBC), Doc Martin (ITV), Holby City (BBC), Midsomer Murders (ITV) and The Bill (ITV).

Director Kate Fahy, returns to Park Theatre where she directed Jean-Claude Carriere's Little Black Book in Park90. She also directed Oliver Cotton's play Wet Weather Cover at The King's Head and in the West End's Arts Theatre. Kate is also an actress, with recent credits including Handbagged (Roundhouse Theatre Washington DC/Tricycle Theatre), A Lie Of The Mind (Southwark Playhouse), Winter Solstice (Orange Tree Theatre) After Electra (Tricycle Theatre), Martin Crimps' Definitely The Bahamas (Orange Tree Theatre) and Edward Albee's The Goat (Almeida Theatre /Apollo Theatre).

A filmmaker and writer, A. Bodin Saphir has written and directed a number of acclaimed short films. He produced and co-directed the award winning documentary Who's Gonna Love Me Now? and is Author in Residence at Great Ormond Street Hospital. Rosenbaum's Rescue is his first play.

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