By Orit Guttel

Rachel Yaul has a large collection of dolls, each with its own unique character and story. The dolls, displayed on a shelf in Raul’s Jerusalem apartment, are intimately linked with her past experiences and memories—memories of her childhood home in Hungary, of Auschwitz, of forced labor in Bremen, of her long sickness in Bergen-Belsen, and of her liberation. Other dolls are associated with her subsequent 60 years in Israel.

For decades, Rachel told her story. She participated in workshops at Yad Vashem on how to give testimony (supported by a grant from the German Foundation for Remembrance, Responsibility and Future), and met with scores of pupils, soldiers, and groups in Israel and abroad. But her failing health was always a concern. “What will I do when I can no longer tell my story?” she asked Naomi Morgenstern, the Yad Vashem employee who recorded her testimony. “Who will continue to tell it?” “I will,” promised Naomi.

Years passed, and Rachel’s greatest fears were realized. Some eight years ago, a stroke brought her testimony activities to a halt. Meanwhile, Naomi had left her job at Yad Vashem, and the two women lost touch. But three years ago, Naomi went to visit Rachel again, and once more her eyes fell upon her impressive doll collection. At that point, recalls Naomi, she decided the time had come to follow up on her promise.

Naomi met with Rachel once a week over the next year and a half. During these sessions, Rachel recounted the events of her life, and told the tale of each doll. Naomi recorded every word. Then she was left with the challenge: how should she relate Rachel’s story? “At first, I thought about writing a book,” she said, “but I soon realized that it would not be enough. My job was to recount what happened, again and again, until it was passed on to someone else.” Then it became clear: she would use the dolls to present Rachel’s story.

Naomi, who is neither an actress nor a director, explains: “I built the story around the dolls, since this is the way that Rachel chose to preserve her own memories.

“At a certain point,” she adds, “I realized that Rachel did not collect dolls, she collected people. Each doll represents some part of her past as she remembers it today.”

Rachel recalls Naomi’s dedication: “She sat with me for hours, with boundless patience. Nobody else can tell my story. She knows the dolls, and the story of my life, which has always been heavily overshadowed by the Holocaust. It is vital for me that someone will continue telling my story after I am gone, and Naomi is doing that for me.”

Naomi converted the written testimony into a play with the help of a professional director. In her performance, she tells of Rachel’s life in the past and present tense, always in the first person, speaking directly to the audience. She performs to groups of up to 60 people—adults and high school pupils. After the performance, the audience is invited to examine the dolls and ask questions, which Naomi answers on Rachel’s behalf.

Naomi presented the story for the first time in July, at a new conference for teachers launched at Yad Vashem’s International School for Holocaust Studies. From now on, the play will form part of the ongoing activities at the School, and will also be performed, by request, to outside audiences.

“This initiative was prompted by a sincere sense of commitment, and a personal desire to pass the memory of the Holocaust on to future generations,” says Inbal Kvity, Director of the School’s Study Seminars Department. “She wishes to preserve the memories of people who lived through this period, and we hope that others will be inspired by her example.”

top