The Past is the Present at Lost Nation Theater, with ROSE –by Martin Sherman – on the Winterfest Stage: Feb 6 & 7.

“after I saw your brilliant performance last summer, I didn’t think you could surpass it. But you did! You Surpassed it!’ – Bob Belenky, Hanover

Mary Wheeler is Rose - an 80-year-old Holocaust survivor whose epic story spans the history of the 20th century.

“There is plenty of laughter, as well as tears.” – Jim Lowe, The Times Argus.

The play opens with Rose sitting shivah (a Jewish mourning ritual). She recounts her own often gut-wrenching tale of hardship and survival with self-deprecating humor for spellbinding and provocative theater.  Martin Sherman, the Tony Winning playwright, created Rose from a composite of the women in his family. His authenticity resounds as audience members leave the theater deeply moved and saying “she was just like my mother” – or “my grandmother” – or “my aunt”.

“Wheeler’s solo performance was magnetic, revealing, even funny” – Nat Frothingham, The Bridge

A woman with a thirst for life, Rose’s story is full of adventure, risk-taking, love, deep heart ache – she survived the Warsaw Ghetto, but her children did not. Her story gives much of our world history a human face. She reflects on her growing up, falling in love, having children, surviving the Ghetto, becoming a displaced person, and eventually going on to a new life in the USA – where she lives through the 60’s drug culture, and then the American Dream by becoming a successful hotel owner in Miami Florida. What Ms. Wheeler loves about the show is all the questioning Rose does.

Wheeler first performed ROSE last summer, and she is delighted to be working on the show again: “When I finished with her last summer, I thought ‘if only I could stay with her for another six months!’ So now I have the chance to deliver more fully the things I had only just begun to discover about Rose then, which means she has a greater depth and I think a more acute self-irony which she heartily enjoys.”

After seeing Mary Wheeler’s performance, Mark Roberts of Hyde Park wrote in a letter to the editor: “Rose has an amazing story to tell…contemporary to many of the events we see unfolding every day.  Rose spins a tale that shows us how we human beings, even after intense suffering & long term misery, are capable of holding fast to our capacity for love, humor, wisdom & perseverance…entertaining & surprisingly funny.”­

Wheeler has been featured in numerous LNT shows including STONE and Romeo & Juliet. Most recently she appeared in Always, Patsy Cline at the Skinner Barn .Tara Lee Downs (American Buffalo, Waiting for Godot) directs, with lighting by Jeffrey Salzberg and sound by Ms. Downs and Andrew Vachon.

Opening Night, Thursday Feb. 4 will feature a post-show discussion led by Ben Scotch. The recently retired Executive Director of Vermont’s ACLU, Scotch has spent his legal career working to enhance and improve democracy. A Harvard Law School graduate, he is also a member of the legal board of the American Jewish Committee.  The show’s journey brings us full circle to events of today.

Tickets are: $20 ($15 for stu’s & seniors; $10 for ages 6-11, please be certain the show is appropriate for your child before bringing them to the theater). Performances are at 7:30pm Thursdays through Saturdays and 2pm on Sundays at Montpelier City Hall.  Lost Nation Theater is wheelchair accessible and an assisted listening system is available. Please inform the box office of any special needs when purchasing tickets.

So get to Montpelier City Hall. Glow with the warmth of a truly satisfying entertainment! Lost Nation Theater is underwritten by National Life Group, Capitol Copy, The Times Argus, and The City of Montpelier, and media sponsorship from WDEV-Radio Vermont, WCVT, and The Point!, with additional support Capitol Stationers, The Northfield Inn, The World and Vermont Mutual Insurance.