About this Event
“The common humanity of people, not the power of governments, is the only real protector of human rights.. We have to take care of each other.” Jan Karski, legendary Georgetown University Professor and Holocaust witness
“ A masterful tour-de-force… a crucial reminder of society’s duty to bear witness, especially whenever and wherever it would seem impossible to raise one’s voice above the din of indifference.” Los Angeles Times
The Laboratory for Global Performance & Politics presents:
Remember This: The Legacy of Jan Karski Today
Join Academy-Award nominated actor David Strathairn, writer/ director Derek Goldman, Producer Eva Anisko, and special guests on Thursday April 11th as we celebrate the legacy of legendary Georgetown Professor, World War II hero and Holocaust witness Jan Karski with the first public campus screening of the celebrated film and accompanying discussion about the immediacy and resonance of Karski’s example in the context of today's world.
Featured on PBS Great Performances and recipient of numerous awards at leading film-festivals.
In partnership with The Jan Karski Educational Foundation, the Walsh School of Foreign Service, Georgetown College, The Department of Government, the Film & Media Studies Program, The Lannan Center for Poetics and Social Practice.
This event celebrating the 110th anniversary of Karski’s birth and the 10th anniversary of the original launch of the Remember This project at the Karski Centennial Celebration in Gaston Hall, and inaugurates the Karski Legacy Initiative to to enable Georgetown students, faculty and the wider community to gather annually to commemorate Karski through engaging with Remember This.
New York Times Critic’s Pick
“GRIPPING... a virtuosic David Strathairn...under Derek Goldman’s inspired direction.” – The Washington Post
“A Triumph … more timely than ever. . Chicago Sun-Times
“Never-to-be-forgotten.” Chicago Tribune
“A brilliant and timely portrayal of an extraordinary man.” – Christiane Amanpour, CNN
Background:
In April 2014, The Lab began its profound journey to share the incredible story of Jan Karski as part of the Centennial Celebration of his birth. Academy Award Nominated actor David Strathairn, along with a group of Georgetown students, presented a staged reading in Gaston Hall. The performance showcased the first version of Clark Young and Derek Goldman's play, Remember This: The Lesson of Jan Karski, highlighting the story of the renowned Georgetown Professor and Polish diplomat who bravely risked his life to bring evidence of the Holocaust to Western governments during WWII.
Since then the play has evolved into an internationally-celebrated solo performance that has been performed at leading theaters in Chicago, Washington DC, and Berkeley as well as in London, Spain, and four cities in Poland; and a film that has received numerous awards and was broadcast nationally on PBS’ Great Performances, all with Strathairn in the role that he originated. The film takes a bold, elegant and expressionistic approach to cinematically transform the original stage play of to provide an intensity and intimate theatricality rarely experienced on screen.
Film synopsis:
In a virtuoso solo performance, Academy Award nominee David Strathairn (Good Night, and Good Luck, Lincoln, Nomadland) portrays Jan Karski in this genre-defying true story of a reluctant World War II hero and Holocaust witness. After surviving the devastation of the Blitzkrieg, Karski swears allegiance to the Polish Underground and risks his life to carry the first eyewitness reports of war-torn Poland to the Western world and, ultimately, the Oval Office. Escaping a Gestapo Pr*son, bearing witness to the despair of the Warsaw Ghetto and confronted by the inhumanity of a death camp, Karski endures unspeakable mental anguish and physical torture to stand tall in the halls of power and speak the truth. Strathairn captures the complexity and legacy of this self-described “insignificant, little man” whose timely story of moral courage and individual responsibility can still shake the conscience of the world.
Event Venue & Nearby Stays
37th Street Northwest & O Street Northwest, 37th Street Northwest & O Street Northwest, Washington, United States
USD 0.00