Imagine spending years in a hidden attic, unable to go outside and scared of who might discover you.

This horrifying image was a reality for a young Jewish girl and her family. Their story comes to life in an award-winning drama which opens Friday at the Des Moines Playhouse.

“The Diary of Anne Frank” is the day-by-day record of the two years Anne Frank and her family spent hiding in a secluded attic to avoid Nazi persecution.

The play won a variety of awards when it first premiered in 1955, including the Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award.

Richard Choate, director of the production for the Playhouse, said that while the show is 42 years old, it is as fresh today as when it first opened.

He attributes this to the the quality of the writing, not just the subject matter. “It’s spoken to people and given a message that’s hopeful,” he said.

The play opens after the war with the attic in shambles. The diary Anne kept is discovered and the stories it details come to life onstage.

The audience sees firsthand the experiences shared by Anne and the seven others who faced life in the secret annex, Choate said.

In the spring of 1942, the Franks are joined in the attic by another family, the Van Daans, and later by a dentist who is also forced to go into hiding.

Anne and Peter Van Daan develop a strong and emotional friendship that leads to the beginning of a courtship.

Choate said the story itself is episodic, with scenes ranging from heartwarming and funny to terrifying and heartbreaking. A Hanukkah scene at the end of the Act I is one of the highlights, he said.

“They persevere under the circumstances to celebrate,” Choate said.

The play explores the daily struggles leading up to the capture of Anne and the other refugees. The final scene shows the police actually breaking down the attic door and taking them into custody.

While the show is set against a backdrop of tragedy, Choate said the play isn’t actually about the Holocaust.

Instead, it is the story of how people go to extreme measures to stay alive. It shows that life goes on, and, even in the face of death, people continue to change and mature.

“They lived, they laughed, they loved. They did all the things we as human beings hold dear,” Choate said of the people represented in the play.

Choate’s main objective in directing the piece was to simply tell the story for the audience. While Anne’s name appears in the title, the characters are basically equals.

The play also recognizes Frank’s skilled writing, Choate said.

“Even at 13 years old she was a confident writer. She had an inspired style in her writing,” he said.

Playhouse Marketing Director Lee Ann Bakros encouraged the community to take advantage of a variety of activities related to the show.

Audience members will be given the opportunity to experience the conditions Frank and thousands of others faced during the Holocaust.

A mock-up of the secret annex will be displayed in the Playhouse’s upper lobby to demonstrate the small space families faced during their time in hiding.

The annex is complete with Anne’s bedroom, which Bakros described as about half the size of most student’s dorm rooms.

The lobby will house music, artwork and videotapes of the Holocaust.

Also in conjunction with the play is a speech by Dr. Louis I. Leviticus, a schoolmate of Frank. Leviticus will speak at the Playhouse on Tuesday, Oct. 28, at 7:00 p.m.

Leviticus’s family also went into hiding in 1942. Along with sharing personal experiences, he will speak on how it was possible for the Germans to massacre so many people in the Netherlands, and how the Dutch reacted.

The event is free to the public.

“There’s ample opportunities for audience questions and interactions,” Bakros said.

Performances of “The Diary of Anne Frank” will be Oct. 24 through Nov. 9. Wednesday-Saturday shows will be held at 8 p.m. and Sunday shows at 2:00 and 7:30 p.m.

All performances will be held at the Des Moines Playhouse, 831 42nd St., Des. Moines.

Tickets and additional information on educational programs related to the show can be obtained by calling the Playhouse Box Office at (515) 227-6261.