How do you honour the legacy of a woman you hardly knew, and didn’t really like?
Something different for this month's Encore - a play about three generations of Jew-ish women.
Niusia was a Holocaust survivor. Charming, savvy, and – if you ask her granddaughter, Beth – a pretty mean lady. She’s ready to learn who Niusia was but soon discovers there is no straight forward story.
Reading, interviewing, and weaving memories and handed-down stories, Beth sets out to understand her nana’s complex legacy. She gives voice to the cruel thoughts you shouldn’t have about your holocaust-surviving nana, stumbles upon her own Jewishness (something she used only to evade school church services), and ultimately confronts how deeply embedded these horrific memories are in her family line. She asks: “I’ve somehow always known these stories. When did I learn these stories, and how?”.
Journey with Beth as she is shown the tenderness she missed out on, learns to laugh at the unlaughable, and wades through the complexity of trauma-laden memories, love, and familial relationships.
Recommended for ages 15+.
NIUSIA is part of the 2025 VCE Playlist for Drama Unit 3
Warnings: References to violence, war, antisemitism, concentration camps, war crimes, and genocide. Depiction of a PTSD flashback. Descriptions of concentration camp experiences.
‘★★★★ - one of the finest solo, biographical shows I’ve ever seen’ Theatre Matters.
‘This is ground-breaking, needed, clever, entertaining, and satisfying theatre. ’ Toorak Times.
‘NIUSIA is a courageous, hilarious, and affecting work.’ Farrago.
This performance is part of the Drum's Encore Program. All Encore tickets include complimentary morning tea and a parking voucher. Morning tea is provided before the show, from 9.30am.
a ry presentation, toured by Regional Arts Victoria.
Duration: 75 mins, no interval
Date and Time
Thursday 16 October, 10.30am
Date and Time
-
Location
Drum Theatre
Corner Lonsdale and Walker streets, Dandenong
Cost of Event (if any)
Tickets: Full Price: $22; Group (8+): $20; Member: $18
Bookings/Registrations
Add to Calendar
2025-10-16 10:30:00
2025-10-16 10:30:00
Encore - Niusia
How do you honour the legacy of a woman you hardly knew, and didn’t really like?
Something different for this month's Encore - a play about three generations of Jew-ish women.
Niusia was a Holocaust survivor. Charming, savvy, and – if you ask her granddaughter, Beth – a pretty mean lady. She’s ready to learn who Niusia was but soon discovers there is no straight forward story.
Reading, interviewing, and weaving memories and handed-down stories, Beth sets out to understand her nana’s complex legacy. She gives voice to the cruel thoughts you shouldn’t have about your holocaust-surviving nana, stumbles upon her own Jewishness (something she used only to evade school church services), and ultimately confronts how deeply embedded these horrific memories are in her family line. She asks: “I’ve somehow always known these stories. When did I learn these stories, and how?”.
Journey with Beth as she is shown the tenderness she missed out on, learns to laugh at the unlaughable, and wades through the complexity of trauma-laden memories, love, and familial relationships.
Recommended for ages 15+.
NIUSIA is part of the 2025 VCE Playlist for Drama Unit 3
Warnings: References to violence, war, antisemitism, concentration camps, war crimes, and genocide. Depiction of a PTSD flashback. Descriptions of concentration camp experiences.
‘★★★★ - one of the finest solo, biographical shows I’ve ever seen’ Theatre Matters.
‘This is ground-breaking, needed, clever, entertaining, and satisfying theatre. ’ Toorak Times.
‘NIUSIA is a courageous, hilarious, and affecting work.’ Farrago.
This performance is part of the Drum's Encore Program. All Encore tickets include complimentary morning tea and a parking voucher. Morning tea is provided before the show, from 9.30am.
a ry presentation, toured by Regional Arts Victoria.
Duration: 75 mins, no interval
Australia/Melbourne
public