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In 1933, the Reichstag (parliament building) in Berlin, Germany, burned. The fire--although its origins and cause are unknown--provided the Nazi Party with an opportunity to suspend civil rights and liberties in Germany. Adolf Hitler had been elected German Chancellor only one month prior, and with his newly granted dictatorship following the fire, set out to create Lebensraum (meaning “living place�) for the German people throughout Europe. This aggressive and brutal foreign policy led to the invasion and annexation of other countries as well as the Holocaust, in which over six million Jewish people were killed.

Theatre in Europe during the war became more rare. Artists who did speak out against the Nazis (like Bertolt Brecht) were forced into exile. As the war spread into the Pacific Theatre, and the United States entered the conflict, the nature of theatre and entertainment changed significantly around the world.

Terminology

• Adaptation: A play, musical, or opera that has been adapted from a written work.
• Allegory: A narrative that can be interpreted to have a hidden meaning, often related to history, society, morality, or religion.
• Anti-Semitism: Hostility and prejudice against Jewish people.
• The Blitz: A sustained bombing campaign against the United Kingdom by Germany in 1940 and 1941. The term is derived from the German word Blitzkrieg, or “lighting war.â€�
• Cabaret: Nightclub or restaurant with musical entertainment.
• Dictatorship: A form of government in which absolute power rests with a single autocratic ruler.
• Epic Theatre: A style or genre of drama characterized by realism and an absence of theatrical devices. Often associated with the work of Bertolt Brecht.
• Experimental Theatre: A type of drama that uses new methods of writing, staging, and performance, rather than traditional or conventional dramatic methods.
• Holocaust: The systematic genocide of six-million Jewish people during World War II.
• Kindertransport: The organized effort to evacuate children from countries invaded or annexed by the Nazis during World War II.
• Propaganda: Biased or misleading information intended to promote a particular viewpoint or political cause.
• Rationing: A strict supply control put in place during wartime; rationing could refer to food, metals, or other materials determined necessary for military forces.
• Vaudeville: A type of popular entertainment popular chiefly in the early twentieth century, featuring a mixture of specialty acts, such as burlesque comedy and song and dance.

Key Dates & Events

• 1930: Adolf Hitler becomes Chancellor of Germany
• 1938: The von Trapp family flees Austria; The Anschluss: Germany annexes Austria
• 1939: Hitler invades Czechoslovakia, then Poland
• 1939: Britain and France declare war on Germany
• 1940: The Blitz, the bombing campaign against London as part of the Battle of Britain. In this year, Italy joined the Axis powers. The British forces were beaten back to the shores of Dunkirk, France, prompting the famous evacuation by any and all British boats and ships available (codenamed Operation Dynamo).
• 1941: The Empire of Japan bombs Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. The United States and Britain declare war on Japan. In exile, Brecht writes several plays, including Mother Courage and Her Children and The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui
• 1942: Doolittle Raid on Tokyo is launched as retaliation for Pearl Harbor. In June, the American forces win the Battle of Midway, their first major victory against the Japanese forces in the Pacific and a turning point in the war.
• 1942: The Frank and van Pels families go into hiding in the Secret Annex. They are discovered in 1944 and arrested by the Gestapo. All except Otto Frank perish in concentration camps.
• 1942: Franklin Roosevelt signs Executive Order 9066. The first Japanese internment camps are established.
• 1943: Italy surrenders to the Allied Powers.
• 1944: On June 6, American and Allied forces land on the beaches of Normandy, an event referred to as D-Day. In December, the Battle of the Bulge, the final major military campaign by the Nazi forces commences.
• 1944: On the Town premieres
• 1945: Mussolini is captured and executed in April. Two days later, Hitler commits suicide. In May, Germany surrenders; on May 8th V.E. (Victory in Europe) Day is celebrated. In August, the atomic bombs are dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Japan surrenders.