Playing for Time (DVD)

This Emmy Award winning television drama tells the story of a group of women prisoners in Auschwitz who survived the gas chambers by playing in a small orchestra. Based on a true story. A powerful adaptation of Holocaust survivor Fania Fanelon's autobiography. Fanelon, a Jewish singer/pianist, was imprisoned in the Auschwitz concentration camp during World War II. There, she was able to stay alive by becoming a member of the prison's female orchestra. In the process, she struck up a close relationship with Alma Rose, the musical group's leader, as well as the other members of the band. Playing for the Nazis, however, robbed the women of much of their dignity and most of them often questioned whether remaining alive was worth the abuse they constantly suffered. Directed by Daniel Mann. Starring Vanessa Redgrave, Jane Alexander, Viveca Lindfors and Maud Adams.