Centropa Stories

On New Year's Day, 1950, in a synagogue in Abbey Road in North London, Paul and Anitta began their life together. In the 1960s, Paul insisted on visiting Vienna. But why, asked his wife Anitta. “To kill a ghost,” Paul said.

A few months later, Anitta's parents took her to the train station and sent her on a Kindertransport to England. But would her parents find a way out?

We begin this episode in Vienna's second district in 1938, and it was from an apartment on Springergasse that a 15-year old Jewish boy sent a letter to England, begging for help.

Zhanna Litinskaya, from our Kyiv office, spent three weeks in Chisinau in 2004 interviewing elderly Holocaust survivors. Zhanna spent three afternoons with the head of the community, Theodor Magder, who spoke of surviving the war, working as a journalist during the Communist years, and how he joined the government once Moldova became independent. Read by Steve Furst in London.

Still teaching school at the age of 79, Polina Leibovich shares with us her story of a happy childhood and how she managed to survive hell in the camps of Transnistria.  Interviewed for Centrpa by Natalia Fomina in 2004, Polina also tells us about finding a husband, raising a family and devoting her life to teaching.  Read by Sara Kestelman in London.

Narrated by Edward Serotta Moldova became an independent country when the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991, Well more than 65,000 Jews were registered then and over the next two decades, the overwhelming majority emigrated to Israel. The community stands at less than 5,000 today but provides its members with kindergartens, youth clubs, sports teams and care for seniors. Centropa conducted two dozen interviews in Moldova and we have chosen two of those stories for this podcast season.

Episode 2: They were 13 and 14-year-old boys imprisoned in the Terezin (Theresienstadt) Ghetto and only a handful would survive the Holocaust. But these teenagers fought back with everything they had: determination, ethics, and moral courage. Every Friday night, they would take turns reading from their own secret magazine, Vedem (Czech for In The Lead) which was filled with poetry, essays, and humor. Petr Ginz (1928-1944) was Vedem's driving force and in this documentary, you'll hear six actors tell the story of Vedem, and how Petr and his friends have left us with a legacy of life.

Episode 1: They were 13 and 14-year-old boys imprisoned in the Terezin (Theresienstadt) Ghetto and only a handful would survive the Holocaust. But these teenagers fought back with everything they had: determination, ethics, and moral courage. Every Friday night, they would take turns reading from their own secret magazine, Vedem (Czech for In The Lead) which was filled with poetry, essays, and humor. Petr Ginz (1928-1944) was Vedem's driving force and in this documentary, you'll hear six actors tell the story of Vedem, and how Petr and his friends have left us with a legacy of life.

Ludmila Weinerova grew up in Prague and was deported to Terezin with her parents and brothers when she was 22 years old. Ludmila paints a vivid picture of what life was like in the ghetto: grim and frightening on the one hand, but on the other, she performed in operas and in choirs that the prisoners performed. Lubmila Rutarova was interviewed by Daniela Greslova in Prague in 2007.

Antonie grew up in Brno, where her family lived on the grounds of the Jewish community's sports club. When the deportations began, her 12 year old brother went into hiding, her father was taken into forced labor, and Antonie, 16 years old, looked after her mother in Terezin. A story of incredible bravery, heartbreak and commitment. Antonie Militka was interviewed by Barbara Pokreis in Brno in 2004 narrated by Jilly Bond

Jan Fischer, who became one of Prague's most creative postwar theatre directors and memoirists, fell in love with the stage while a prisoner in Terezin. He and his fellow cellmates performed dramas, musicals and comedies, until one by one, they were deported to Auschwitz-Birkenau. A compelling story of tragedy and resilience. Jan Fischer was interviewed by Silvia Singerova in Prague in 2003 narrated by Peter Moreton

Born into a completely assimilated home in Prague, Alena Synkova didn't understand what it meant to be Jewish until Germany's invasion and occupation. Her mother died young, her father was sent off to his death, Alena was called up for a transport to Terezin and her brother fled to the resistance. Alena spent three years in Terezin and after the war became a well known poet, journalist and screenwriter. Alena Munkova was interviewed by Zuzana Strouhova in Prague in 2005 and 2006 narrated by Shelley Blond

Edward Serotta's introduction to the Centropa Podcast Season about Terezin.

narrated by Henry Goodman Simon was less than three years old when the family was sent into the hell of Transnistria. They barely survived, and as he grew up in postwar Romania, Simon tells us of the unspeakable poverty and hunger he went through. Simon became an agricultural expert, married, had children. This lively, ironic storyteller is well worth listening to.

narrated by Jeni Barnett Rifca grew up in a village that was nearly 75% Jewish, and she tells us life was good—until the war—when the family was forced to move to a bigger town. They were not deported further but lived in abject poverty and in constant anxiety. Rifca married, raised a family, and spent her last years teaching Hebrew to an ever-shrinking class of Jewish children.

narrated by Steve Furst Simon paints a vivid picture of growing up with his brothers in a Romanian shtetl. The entire family was deported to Transnistria during the war. Not all of them returned. Simon married, raised a family, and in time, became president of his Jewish community.

narrated by Edward Serotta In towns like Dorohoi, Suceava, Botosani, and Radauti, Jewish life carried on all during the post-Holocaust decades. They were rapidly shrinking, of course, as most younger Jews wanted to leave, and the majority of them emigrated to Israel. But these small communities still maintained their canteens, youth clubs, choirs, and seniors' clubs and held regular synagogue services. As of the 2020s, however, most of these organizations were no longer functioning. That makes these three stories all the more compelling, as they take you back to a world now lost to us.

When Nazi Germany occupied Austria, over 110,000 Jews managed to flee. The Luster family, Moses and Golda, and their 14 year old son Leo, could not find a way out. Leo would endure nearly seven years of hell—in Theresienstadt, in Auschwitz, and in work camps in Germany. His story is read to us by Henry Goodman in London.

Jozef trained as a barber and as someone who could repair fountain pens. Those skills first saved his life and brought him into direct contact with Nazi officers in Auschwitz—and led him to testify against them in nearly a dozen postwar trials. His story is read to us by Steve Furst in London.

In March 1939, Nazi Germany occupied the Czech regions of Bohemia and Moravia. Pavel's family was called for a transport to Terezin in 1944. Two years later, they were told they would be sent to “the east.” That meant Auschwitz. Pavel Werner story is read to us by Elliot Levey in London.

Katarina Vidor grew up comfortably middle class in Bratislava. She worked in an accounting office and spoke four languages. She loved playing tennis and water skiing with friends on the Adriatic. She had recently married and her parents lived nearby. Then the war came. Her story is read for us by Jan Goodman in London.

She grew up in a well-to-do family in Budapest, married in 1928, and doted on her only child, Erwin while running three hat shops with her husband. Then the entire family descended into hell. Her story is read to us by Tina Gray.

Auschwitz-Birkenau. the ultimate symbol of the Holocaust, where more than a million Jews were murdered. Of the 1,230 elderly Jews we interviewed between 2000 and 2009, nearly 100 managed to survive this hell on Earth—some to be sent on to even worse places. We present excerpts from five of those interviews, one each from Austria, Hungary, Slovakia, Czechia and Poland.

Mirou-Mairy Karasso was born in 1921, the oldest five children. She grew up wealthy and sheltered until she and her brother Albert, hiding with false papers, boarded a bus for Athens. The rest of the family fled to the mountains. A heartbreaking story of loss. Interviewed by Nina Hatzi in Athens in 2006 narrated by Jeni Barnet

Lily Pardo and her three sisters lived on Tsimiski Street and their father's store was just down the block. And when the Germans began deporting tens of thousands of Jews, their fathers' friend would hide them in his flat—for 18 months. Interviewed by Annita Mordechai in Athens in 2006. Narrated by Jilly Bond.

narrated by Allan Corduner Alberto Beraha's father was a currency trader, his mother taught French. The family escaped during the deportations, and Alberto tells of hiding in a mountain village, where he listened to BBC broadcasts on a hidden radio, and translated the news for the villagers protecting him and his father. Interviewed by Annita Mordechai in Athens in 2007.

narrated by Annita Mordechai I grew up Jewish and Greek, the granddaughter of a woman who survived the Holocaust hiding with her parents and sisters in a friend's apartment. In 2005, I joined a team of Centropa interviewers led by the historian Rena Molho and our goal was to ask elderly Jews born in Thessaloniki to share with us their personal stories—from the 1920s until the early 2000s. We highlight three of those interviews in this podcast season and you can find links to the interviews, as well as book recommendations, in the shownotes. Thanks for listening

A story of horror and resilience Anna Rottenberg, born in 1915 in Lodz, grew up in a wealthy orthodox family. She broke away to study child psychology in Warsaw and when war came, she escaped, but went into the Warsaw Ghetto to try and save her family. Anna describes scenes of unimaginable horror, and how she married resistance fighter Eduard Lanota. Together they fought  the Germans in the August, 1944 uprising. Eduard was killed. Eight months later, Anna delivered their baby. Anna went on to become one of Poland's leading magazine editors and taught child psychology well into her 80s. Read for you by Sara Kestelman in London. Produced by Oleh Teteriatnyk. Interview with Anna Lanota by Alexandra Bankowska

Kirkus Review called Götz and Meyer “brilliantly disturbing” and The Guardian called it “unimprovable.” In this short (168 page) stream of consciousness work of fiction, a school teacher in Belgrade muses—and practically hallucinates—as he wonders just what the two SS men who drove the infamous gas van talked about all day. The fact that both Breda and Matilda Kalef watched their father and grandmother being loaded into this van makes it all the more harrowing. We have chosen an excerpt from Götz and Meyer, which is read by Allan Corduner, an actor with more than 140 screen credits, including Tar, Defiance, The Woman in Gold, The Merchant of Venice and Operation Finale. narrated by: Allan Corduner

She was born with the name Ruchel Kalef. During the war, Father Andrej Tumpej gave her a name to hide behind: Breda. After the war, Ruchel decided, “He gave me more than a name. He gave me a life.” Thanks to Breda, Father Tumpej is now listed as a Righteous Among the Nations. Breda became one of Yugoslavia's best known mezzo-sopranos. Jane Bertish has appeared on stage in London performing George Bernard Shaw and Tennessee Williams. Her television credits include Rosemary's Baby and most recently, Ted Lasso. narrated by Jane Bertish

Rachel Chanin interviewed Matilda Kalef-Cerge for us 2002, and we have remained in touch Matilda, who recalls both an idyllic childhood in a wealthy Sephardic family, and how she, her mother and sister managed to survive during the Holocaust. Read by Sara Kestelman, whose screen and stage credits include the works of Tolstoy, Shakespeare, Gorky and Marlowe, not to mention Star Wars. Excerpt from Leigh White's The Long Balkan Night read by Nate Kelderman of Carnegie Mellon University

Few Jews live in Dorcol today but this quiet corner of Belgrade still evokes its past, when Jewish shops stood cheek by jowl and families scurried off on Friday evenings to synagogue. Ida Labudovic interviewed Vera Amar and Avram Mosic for us in 2002, and both describe what Dorcol was like in its last years. Jilly Bond, who reads Vera Amar, is a regular performer on BBC's The Archers and has read more than 40 audio books.David Horovitch. With 100 screen credits to his name, David Horovitch has performed Shakespeare on stage and in film, was recently seen in Mike Leigh's Mr Turner and is currently starring in the HBO Max series House of the Dragons. Additional reading of Ernst Pavel's memoir by Mikael Gemeda-Breka of Carnegie Mellon University. Special thanks to Jaehee Cho of the Entertainment Technology Center of CMU and Tijana Zherajikj of Centropa. narrated by David Horovitch Jilly Bond

We begin our walking tour and podcast in Belgrade's Kalemegdan, the ancient fortress peering out over the confluence of the Sava and Danube Rivers. In her book, Black Lamb and Grey Falcon, published in 1941, Dame Rebecca West provides us with a short history of Kalemegdan —from the Romans to the Ottomans to the Serbs—and actor Melanie Preston reads an excerpt for you. As we walk down into Dorcol, Stefan Sablic—cantor of the Belgrade synagogue, Ladino singer and musician—will accompany us. narrated by Edward Serotta

narrated by Edward Serotta That is what Maks Levin said when he went off to cover the Russian invasion of eastern Ukraine in 2014. Once the Russians invaded in February, 2022, Maks had but 17 days to live. He was embedded with Ukrainian fighting units and covered the war on the front. On 11 March, his drone went down near the Hostomel airport. Maks went to retrieve it. The Russians were already there.

narrated by Jason Isaacs In this episode, we take a drive out of Kyiv. Our destination is the village of Kozary, 82 kilometers to the north. This is where, in October 1943, the reporter Vasily Grossman wrote his searing essay, Ukraine Without Jews.

narrated by Jan Goodman Lilya Finberg paints a picture of postwar Jewish life in Kyiv, from the days of the ‘anti- cosmopolitan campaign' to the infamous doctor's plot. But Lilya watched society change, especially after Ukraine's independence in 1991, and was thrilled when her son Leonid became one of Ukraine's leading Jewish intellectuals.

narrated by Jane Bertish Jakob Shapiro was a highly decorated Army officer who railed against Jews leaving their motherland for Israel. A construction engineer, he worked on building sites until he was 86. In his final years, Jakob Shapiro mused, “I'll bet I would have done well there,” he said. “Guess I should have gone, too.”

narrated by Henry Goodman Peter Rabtsevich describes what it was like for Jews in Kyiv, and in the Soviet Union, in the decades after the Second World War. Thousands would stand in front of Kyiv's only synagogue on the High Holidays. “They came to remember their heritage, to remember their murdered families, and to remember that they were Jews.”

narrated by Allan Corduner Before he was 20 years old, Hertz Rogovoy had fought in three of the war's major battles: the defense of Moscow, in Stalingrad, and at Orel, where a sniper shot him. Twice. After a year in the hospital, Hertz decided he, too, would become a doctor. And he practiced well into his 80s.

narrated by Sara Kestelman A story with the wallop of a 19th century novel. When the Germans were closing in on Kyiv, Sasha Goldberg took his fiancé, Hana Gehtman, and her sister Dora, to a train headed east. As winter set in, Hana became sick and died. Sasha kept writing her from the front line, and Dora answered, pretending to be Hana.

narrated by David Horovitch Aron's father was sure the Germans and the Romanians would never take Odesa. And he went off to enlist to help make sure they wouldn't. Meanwhile, 16-year-old Aron insisted to his mother they flee on one of the last ships out. The rest of the family remained.

narrated by Shelley Blond Edward Serotta introduces our wartime stories while walking through Babyn Yar, where tens of thousands of Jews were murdered by German soldiers in September 1941. The actor Shelley Blond reads an excerpt from a remarkable memoir. When Petrowskaja asked her father what his grandmother's name was, he shrugs and tells her he was but four years old. “Maybe Esther,” he says. And Maybe Esther walked to the edge of the ravine in Babyn Yar.

narrated by Janet Suzman Perhaps as many as 4 million Ukrainians starved to death during Stalin's enforced famine of 1832/1933. Sarah Kaplan tells us how, even though she was but 16 years old, her mother married her off to a cousin from Moscow, just to get her out of Ukraine.

narrated by Jeni Barnett One of our most colorful storytellers, Sophie tells us how one day, when her mother was walking on the street in Kamenets Podolskii, a handsome young man, an actor, asked for directions.

narrated by Stephen Greif In this short episode, we learn about growing up in a shtetl, fleeing a pogrom, and what it was like living on a collective farm.

narrated by Steve Furst The actor Steve Furst reads an excerpt from Sholem Aleichem's autobiography, From the Fair. This most famous of all Yiddish writers describes what it was like arriving in Kyiv in the late 1880s. As he says about the big city, “If you're afraid of wolves, don't go into the forest.”

narrated by Edward Serotta The actor Steve Furst reads an excerpt from Sholem Aleichem's autobiography, From the Fair. This most famous of all Yiddish writers describes what it was like arriving in Kyiv in the late 1880s. As he says about the big city, “If you're afraid of wolves, don't go into the forest.

Kurt was obsessed with football (soccer). When the family fled to Riga after 1938 and he became obsessed with Communism. Until a Red Army soldier knocked on their door, ordered the family to follow him, and sent them on a train to a gulag prison camp. “Communism,” Kurt said, “You're dead to me.” narrated by David Horovitch.

Kitty Drill came from a family of cattle dealers and fruit sellers. When the Germans occupied Austria, eight mem-bers of her family took a ship down the Danube, another to Haifa, and ended up in a British prison in the Indian Ocean. Narrated by Julia Franklin.

Heinz came from the only Jewish family in their village and got along with everyone. Until Austria was subsumed into the Third Reich. A tale of fleeing to Hungary for safety. Out of the frying pan and into the fire. Narrated by Allan Corduner.

Lilli was living in a small town when suddenly, all her non-Jewish friends started avoiding her. Then came November 9th. Lilli's parents desperately looked for a way to save their daughter. Narrated by Sara Kestelman.