My Father's Voice NYC Reviews and Tickets

77%

(14 Reviews)

Positive

86%

Mixed

14%

Negative

Members say

Thought-provoking, Absorbing, Intelligent, Great writing, Ambitious

About the Show

The Playroom Theater presents Eric Krebs' solo show inspired by letters his father wrote in the '40s while imprisoned on Ellis Island and later, when he served in the U.S. Army.

In 1938 Richard Krebs, a German seaman, jumped ship in Newport News, Virginia and vanished into America. In December 1940, under the pen name Jan Valtin, he published his autobiography, 'Out of the Night,' chronicling his time as a communist revolutionist serving Stalin, and later, as a Gestapo prisoner of the Third Reich, and how he finally escaped. The book became a national sensation but a few years later, he was arrested and imprisoned on Ellis Island as a possible Gestapo agent. After being acquitted, he was drafted and served the United States as a combat infantryman in the jungles in the Pacific War. Using a cache of recently discovered letters, his son, Eric, shares his father's passion, beauty, and despair in the period between 1942 and 1945.

Member Reviews (14)

Compelling story, Well-written letters, Low-key presentation, Needs re-shaping, Intimate setting

See it if you're fascinated by WWII. The host reads aloud from his father's well-written letters. The interesting content needs more shaping and edits

Don't see it if you want real acting. Eric is just a regular guy reading. MFV would gain power from more structure. The Ellis Island portion is too long.