The Diary of Anne Frank 2026

ROLES

ANNE FRANK 13 year-old girl (actor aged 12-15). Warm, witty, intelligent, charming, self-aware, sensitive, often impatient, sometimes a know-it-all, open, determined, easily hurt, spirited, hopeful, fun-loving, desperate, with all the longings, expectations and attitudes that adolescence brings. Though hiding and living in constant fear and isolation, she never gave up. She had a fraught relationship with her mother, adored her father, and lovingly envied her sister.

MARGOT FRANK Anne's 15-year-old sister (actor aged 14-18), pretty, quiet, obedient, demure, frail, friendly, very intelligent, overwhelmed by the trials of hiding, very close to her mother and father. Like Anne, she longed for a friend in whom she could confide. She played the role of peacemaker when Anne overstepped. She was a good girl and was admired by all.

OTTO FRANK Father of Anne and Margot and head of the group living in his Annex, middle 40s to early 50s, upper middle class background, a wise man, fair, loyal, attentive, patient, intelligent, soft, level-headed, optimistic, genuinely liked people, decision-maker, teacher, beloved by his workers who protected him and his family as well as the other tenants of the Annex throughout the war. He was especially susceptible to Anne’s charms. He was devoted to his wife, Edith, and comforted her whenever she was depressed about their living conditions, the attitudes of the van Daans/Dussel, or her relationship with Anne.

EDITH FRANK A lovely woman, wife and mother, mid-40s, from a wealthy German family, reticent, loving, moral, concerned, gracious, cultured, devoted to tradition, devastated by her relationship with Anne, barely able to cope with the demands of everyday life in hiding and isolation, tries very hard to accommodate the lower middle-class van Daan family whose uncouth and argumentative ways are an irritant to her and causes her to finally erupt into a seething rage.

MRS. VAN DAAN Mid 40s, loud, egotistical, talky, often crude, suspicious, bossy, moody, self-important, overbearing, critical of others, flirtatious, manipulative, sometimes depressed, enjoys a good laugh or story, more accepting of her introverted son, delusional about her younger self’s popularity and looks, feels as if she is the Queen Bee in the group, chafes under her husband’s control, tries to run the household. A big stirrer-upper! Yet she is amazingly acceptable. (Anne used alternate names in her diary--Her real name was Auguste van Pels.)

MR. VAN DAAN Mid-40s to 50s, dour, selfish, complaining, ungrateful, superficial, quarrelsome, dictatorial, highly critical of his son Peter, easily irritated, is rather withdrawn from the other occupants of the Annex. His transgression causes the great blow-up in the Annex. (Anne used alternate names in her diary--His real name was Hermann van Pels.)

PETER VAN DAAN 17 year-old boy (actor aged16-19), withdrawn, unsure, awkward, immature, shy, sometimes amusing, attached to his cat, tries to stay out of everyone’s way, hates his mother and father’s constant quarrels, ages from the introverted teenager to the more mature 19 year-old who enjoys the company of the girls and who begins to be interested in all the other occupants of the Annex. (Anne used alternate names in her diary--His real name was Peter van Pels.)

DUSSEL Mid-40s-50, dentist, stodgy, old-fashioned, disciplined, hypercritical, selfish, horrified at Anne’s behavior, genuinely does not like people, picky, unhappy with everything, a man who has not come to terms with his situation, whiny, a perfectionist, ungrateful, and easily angered. (Anne used alternate names in her diary--His real name was Fritz Pfeffer.)

MIEP GIES 25-40, Austrian refugee living in the Netherlands, employed by Mr. Frank, entrusted by Otto Frank with provisioning the occupants of the Annex and hiding them from the outside world, she collected fake ration cards, purchased all their foodstuffs, visited the library on their behalf, and generally tried to keep their spirits up. She was courageous, empathetic, compassionate, and friendly.

MR. KRALER 35-45, Dutch, helps Miep with the responsibilities of feeding and hiding the occupants of the Annex, is an employee of Mr. Frank’s company, a trusted colleague and friend. He is sympathetic to their plight, does what he can for them, and runs the company in Mr. Frank’s name, an honest and good man. (Anne used alternate names in her diary--His real name was Victor Kugler.)

3 NAZIS One is a German Nazi in uniform and the other two are Dutchmen sympathetic to the Nazi cause. They are brutal in their treatment of the Annex occupants.