‘Wiesenthal (Nazi Hunter)’ Performance at Jewish Community Center

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Simon Wiesenthal

Simon Wiesenthal was a Jewish-Austrian Holocaust survivor who dedicated his life after World War II to tracking down and capturing Nazi war criminals. His tenacity and perseverance for justice coupled with his sheer will and determination to live and seek retribution served him well; Wiesenthal survived five concentration camps and a death march, living to the age of 97. He was responsible for capturing more than 1,100 war criminals. 

Wiesenthal’s spirit continues to live on in the award-winning one-man play Wiesenthal (Nazi Hunter) written, directed and performed by Tom Dugan. The one-time performance marks the Milwaukee premiere of this work about the man known as the “Jewish James Bond.” Dugan took a few moments off the road to share his thoughts about the play and its effect on audiences and himself.

How did you first become interested in this subject?

My dad was awarded the Bronze Battle star and Purple Heart in World War II. Of all his stories about his time in Europe, the one that impressed me the most as a kid was when his unit—the 83rd Infantry—liberated the Langenstein-Zwieberge concentration camp [a sub-camp of Buchenwald] in Germany.

I was riveted by the extremes of the situation, the unfathomable cruelty versus complete kindness; enormous courage versus revolting cowardice.

Feeling the 35-year-old shrapnel under his skin, I said to him, "Boy, Dad, you must really hate Germans." His answer surprised me. "Nope... There are all types of people, good and bad. I don’t judge by what group somebody belongs to. I judge by how they behave."

It was that rejection of collective guilt that first drew me to Wiesenthal’s story. Simon Wiesenthal not only spent his life tracking down and bringing Nazi war criminals to justice, he also defended a few German and Austrian officers who refused to participate in "the Final Solution." He not only fought for the rights of Jewish Holocaust victims, but Soviet, Polish, Gypsy, Jehovah’s Witnesses and homosexual victims as well.

For me, Simon Wiesenthal was a true 20th century hero. 

How did you go about researching the subject?

I read dozens of books, watched dozens of documentaries, interviewed many survivors and spoke to several friends of Wiesenthal. The research took about a year. 

Given the amount of information, how did you go about choosing the material that you have?

Many of Wiesenthal’s stories illustrate similar lessons that are important to learn. I chose the best examples of these lessons and wrapped them up in a dramatic narrative that would keep the audience in suspense.

What was your goal in how to portray Wiesenthal?

My goal was for the audience to see a real human being up on stage that was sincerely compelling, not a stale cliché.

Given the number of times you’ve performed this piece, how have you changed the performance, if at all? How has it evolved over time?

There used to be an intermission, but intermissions have fallen out of fashion. The title used to be Nazi Hunter Simon Wiesenthal. But I simplified it to just Wiesenthal. 

Is there anything you discovered during your research that surprised you about Wiesenthal himself? 

I have been touring with Wiesenthal for 12 years now, and people are always surprised by the show. I had a high school student pay me the great compliment recently. He said, "Wow. I thought this was gonna suck."

It was so honest! Of course he thought it was gonna suck; a one-man show about the Holocaust? What a drag, right? Well, what a lot of people don’t know about Simon Wiesenthal was that he was a standup comedian before the war. He understood how to keep an audience’s attention, how to deliver this tough subject matter in a way that was not only palatable but fascinating and, dare I say it, entertaining.

What kind of responses/feedback have you received from your audiences to date? Any outstanding stories you can share? 

Social change is what Wiesenthal is all about. Simon Wiesenthal is remembered as being a Nazi Hunter who brought over 1,100 war criminals to justice. However, his legacy as an educator, to me, is even more important. Over the years, Wiesenthal spoke to thousands of students in his small documentation center in Vienna (which is actually the setting for my play), teaching them how to recognize the signs of trouble within our society and addressing them before our tragic history gets a chance to repeat itself. 

I do a talkback after every performance. Once night, a young woman in her early ‘20s explained that my play taught her everything she knows about the Holocaust. When I asked her why such things were never spoken of in her home growing up, she explained that her great-grandfather was Adolf Eichmann, the architect of the Holocaust. [Wiesenthal played a small but important role in the capture of Eichmann].

What would you like the audience to know or to have learned once they leave the performance? 

There has been progress, but Simon has not fixed the problem. The human savage still lurks just below this wafer-thin veil of civilization. Call him Hitler or Stalin, Mao Zedong, Gaddafi or Bin Laden. He will always be a part of us all and all we can do is contain him.

You’ve written a number of one-person shows. Aside from the topic, does this one play differently than others you’ve written? If so, how?

The response that this play continues to receive across the country far exceeds my wildest dreams. I love all of my plays, but this one is downright magical.

Wiesenthal (Nazi Hunter) will be performed at 2 p.m., Sunday, June 23, at the Jewish Community Center, 6255 N. Santa Monica Blvd., Whitefish Bay, in partnership with the Holocaust Education Resource Center. For more information, call (866) 811-4111 or visit wiesenthaltheshow.com.