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The Lady in Number 6: Music Saved My Life was directed by British-born, Montreal resident, Malcolm Clarke. In fact, the entire production crew was made up of “Montréalais” including co-producer Nick Reed; Executive Producer, Frederic Bohbot; Co-screenwriter and Editor, Carl Freed; Composer, Luc St-Pierre and Director of Photography & Co-Producer, Kieran Crilly.
The documentary was shot in Alice Sommer’s Central London flat where she relentlessly played her grand piano well into her 110th year. Although she was reticent at first to play for the cameras, she overcame her shyness and her immense talent is showcased with “a little bit of Bach.” Her friends Anita Lasker Wallfisch and Zdenka Fantlova, a cellist and actress respectively, also joined the discussion on film as they looked back on their shared experiences. Sadly, Alice passed away exactly one week prior to the Oscars, on February 23rd. The Lady in Number 6 has been called “one of the most inspirational and uplifting stories of the year.” In the midst of the Second World War, Europe was plunged into years of bitter conflict and misery. During that time, Alice Sommer suffered experiences that no human being should have to endure. Along with her son Raphael, she was taken to the Theresienstadt concentration camp while her mother and husband were taken to Auschwitz and Dachau, never to be seen or heard from again. As a means to survive the terrors of the camp, Alice played over 100 concerts for her fellow inmates. Music preserved her mental sanity and her life. As she never tired of saying: “Music saved my life and music saves me still.”
Distributed in Canada by Bunbury Film The Lady in Number 6 will receive its Toronto Premiere on April 13, 2014 at the Al Green Theatre and the Miles Nadal JCC. Tickets are only $10 and are available for purchase on the day of the screening, Sunday, April 13, at the theatre. The short film will be screened four times–12:30pm, 2:30pm, 4:30pm, 6:30pm–and following each screening, the audience is invited to participate in a Q & A session with director Malcolm Clarke and Executive Producer Frederic Bohbot. |
