Dr Korczak's Example

by David Greig

'Dr Korczak’s Example is set in the final, numbered, days of an orphanage in the Warsaw ghetto in 1942. Based on real events, this ‘Brechtian’ retelling generates an almost unbearable power and pathos through the simple humanity, warts and all, of the central characters who are trapped both by the inexorable forces of Nazi oppression and by our fore-knowledge of the fate that awaits them. The play’s ‘alienation’ device of depicting its characters through the use of dolls, further enhances our painful feeling of powerlessness. Yet, in spite of its tragic outcome, Dr Korczak’s Example, like the real life of its protagonist, leaves us exhilarated and uplifted by the indomitable power of love.' Hugh Hodgart Head of Acting at RSAMD, Glasgow

Genres: Plays

96 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2004

About the author

David Greig is a Scottish dramatist. He was born in Edinburgh in 1969 and brought up in Nigeria. He studied drama at Bristol University and is now a well-known writer and director of plays. He has been commissioned by the Royal Court, the National Theatre and the Royal Shakespeare Company and was Artistic Director of the Royal Lyceum Theatre in Edinburgh from 2015 until 2025, when he left to return to writing.

His first play was produced in Glasgow in 1992 and he has written many plays since, produced worldwide. In 1990 he co-founded Suspect Culture Theatre Group with Graham Eatough in Glasgow.

His translations include Camus' Caligula (2003), Candide 2000, and When the Bulbul Stopped Singing, based on a book by Raja Shehadeh. Danmy 306 + Me (4 ever) (1999) is a play written for children.

David Greig's plays include The American Pilot (2005), about America's involvement in the Middle East and Eastern Europe; Pyrenees (2005) about a man who is found in the foothills of the Pyrenees, having lost his memory; and San Diego (2003), a journey through the American dream. His latest works are Gobbo, a modern- day fairytale; Herges Adverntures of Tintin, an adaptation; Yellow Moon (2006); and Damascus (2007)

Reviews

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

From BBC radio 4 Extra:
Based on the true story of Janusz Korczak, best-selling children's novelist, paediatrician and social experimenter, who set up a Jewish Orphanage in Warsaw and ran it as a children's democracy.

When the Nazis close in on Warsaw, Korczak and his children are forced to move into the ghetto stretching Korczak's pacifist ideals to the limit. But the Dr's. values are threatened not only by Nazi regime but by the arrival of a young Jewish boy who believes in fighting back.

Written by David Greig.

Dr Korczak.................ALEXANDER MORTON
Stephanie.............................VICKI LIDDELLE
Adzio...........................SIMON DONALDSON
Cerniakow..........................SANDY NEILSON
Stepan ....................ANTHONY HUTCHESON
Priest...............................MATTHEW ZAJAC
Abraza...............................EWAN MacLEOD
Tadeusz .......................FERGUS HITCHCOCK
Bruno..............................FINN HITCHCOCK
Miriam/Zelda.......................KATIE NEVILLE
Coco...........................SARAH-BETH NEVILLE

Violinist: Daphne Godson

Director: Lu Kemp

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in November 2004.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000...

[Matthew Trearty · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an interesting play covering a hard hitting and also, in a weird way, uplifting story of Dr Korczak who showed his belief in children and in the rights of children until the very end. There are elements of the play, in being so short, that do not build in the way one would find believable, such as Adzio and Steffi's relationship, but as a short play that it to be accepted. The use of dolls as representation of the orphans is a novel idea and is definitely Brechtian in technique but I think it is a bit cumbersome as a device in its application.

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This play is one that my son is studying for Drama GCSE. I picked it up to have a quick look and ended up reading it all as it is only 70 pages long. An interesting play based on a real person. Janusz Korczak ran an orphanage in the Polish ghetto during the Nazi occupation. He ran his orphanage based on an ideal of children's rights which later formed the cornerstone of the UN Convention on the Right of the Child. The characters of the orphans have been fictionalised. I love the contrast between the was Korczak deals with the situation and how Adzio (one of the orphans) deals with it in a totally contrasting way. The ending is not a happy one as you would imagine with a play based in the place and time that it is.

[Mason B · Rating 4 out of 5]

This Brechtian play was an enjoyable read. I liked the use of dolls and metaphoric speech that carried the message. It had a powerful message that I appreciated. However (like Jekyll & Hyde) it became quite dryly written. I feel like some characters were quite two-dimensional. Having said that, Adzio was brilliant.

[daft sod · Rating 3 out of 5]

obviously devastating, and approached with respect and intent. the dolls in particular were especially powerful.

what i will say is that the edition i read (and i believe the only edition published?) was littered with grammatical and spelling errors.