Play exploring the life of Auschwitz survivor Primo Levi to premiere in London

Debut playwright Geoffrey Williams explores the life of Holocaust survivor and writer Primo Levi in his new play ‘Drowned or Saved?’

The South-African born playwright told the JC that his interest in Levi’s writing and way of thinking stems from his background in psychology. “Something about the way Levi writes captured me, his view of the Holocaust and his desperate need to make sense of it,” said Mr Williams.

The play, set after the Holocaust, sees Levi grappling with writing the story of his life. The play imagines Levi conjuring the prophet of Elijah to help him in his quest.

With the prophet’s assistance, Levi is taken on a journey through his own memories which causes him to ponder what it means to have survived the Holocaust.