A GROUP of teenage pupils at St Ivo School have raised £1,600 by writing and performing a play about a family destroyed by the Holocaust. The students had raised the money for Yad Vashem UK, but the charity was so impressed with the play, it returned the

A GROUP of teenage pupils at St Ivo School have raised £1,600 by writing and performing a play about a family destroyed by the Holocaust.

The students had raised the money for Yad Vashem UK, but the charity was so impressed with the play, it returned the youngsters' donation and asked them to use the cash to take their performance to other schools.

The play To Die For is set in the heart of Germany in 1941. It focuses on a family of German Jews who try to resist Nazi Oppression but are betrayed by friends and neighbours.

The chairman of Yad Vashem UK, Jeffery Pinnick, said: "It was a pleasure and a privilege to see this raw, brutal but brilliant piece of drama. Each and every actor performed with passion, skill and talent worthy of the professional stage. The quality of the writing, production and direction was better than first class."

Yad Vashem (Hebrew for "hand and name") is a charity which aims to ensure that the world never forgets the Holocaust.

On receiving the donation from Mark Dominy, writer/director of To Die For, Mr Pinnick, accompanied by Auschwitz survivor Geoff Faerber, gave back the cheque, asking the cast to use the funds to stage further performances at other schools.