About 15,000 children passed through the Terezin concentration camp. Fewer than 100 survived. JCC Chicago will present I Never Saw Another Butterfly, a gripping play based on the writings of these Terezin children who, in the midst of unfathomable atrocity, find a beautiful inner spirit and courage.

I Never Saw Another Butterfly opens at 7:30 p.m., Thursday, Feb. 26, at Mayer Kaplan JCC, 5050 Church St., Skokie. The performance will be followed by a Q&A with local Holocaust survivors Lisl Bogart and Kurt Gutfreund, made possible in partnership with the Illinois Holocaust Museum & Education Center.

Two performances will be held at noon and 2:30 p.m., Sunday, Mar. 1; the final performance will take place at 2:30 p.m., Sunday, Mar. 8, followed by another Q&A session.

The bestselling book I Never Saw Another Butterfly has received critic accolades since its release in 1994. On the pages of poems and pictures drawn by the young inmates, we see the daily misery of these uprooted children, as well as their hopes and fears, their courage and optimism.

For JCC Chicago, it was important to bring this emotive and poignant story to the stage.

“Often we do fun musicals and lighter fare, but [we] feel this theatrical experience will be thought-provoking for audiences and a bridge to discuss a difficult subject with the whole family,” said Director Robert Bouwman.

Adults and children ages 12 and older are invited to join JCC Chicago for this moving and powerful production. Tickets are available online for $11 at www.gojcc.org/theater.Special pricing of $5 per person is also available for the Mar. 8 performance.

For more information about Lisl Bogart and Kurt Gutfreund, please contact Amanda Berrios of the Illinois Holocaust Museum & Education Center at [email protected].