Documentary film "Dancing Over the Abyss" - Bremer Bündnis für deutsch-tschechische Zusammenarbeit

Dancing Over the Abyss

or: Who were Bedřich “Fritz” Weiss
and the Ghetto Swingers?

The documentary “Dancing over the Abyss” traces the history of the Ghetto Swingers, a jazz combo from the Theresienstadt ghetto. The Ghetto Swingers under their bandleader Bedřich (Fritz) Weiss were made up of Jewish prisoners who brought modern swing sounds into the closed confines of the Theresienstadt ghetto. Their development is shown from the founding of the band to their extermination in the German gas chambers. Their contemporary significance is addressed, as is the memory of them, both through their musical legacy and through contemporary witnesses. The film sheds light on the power of music in a place of Nazi injustice, defying the propagandistic exploitation of the band by the Nazi regime and deportation to the Auschwitz-Birkenau extermination camp.

The film is directed by the well-known Czech filmmakers Marek Jícha and Josef “Pepi” Lustig. The film is accompanied by historians Petr Koura and Šárka Jarská. The central actor is Czech dance teacher Jan Onder, who has achieved national fame after winning the TV show StarDance twice. The film premiere took place on September 28, 2025 at the Atlas cinema in Prague.

Tanec nad propastí, CZ, 2025, 62 min
Director: Josef Lustig, Marek Jícha

Dancing Over the Abyss

or: Who were Bedřich “Fritz” Weiss
and the Ghetto Swingers?

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Dancing Over the Abyss

or: Who were Bedřich “Fritz” Weissand the Ghetto Swingers?

Visit us on Instagram

or on Facebook

or: Who were Bedřich “Fritz” Weiss
and the Ghetto Swingers?

Visit
us on Instagram