They were written decades apart – one by adults and one by children —  but the two pieces that comprise “Remember Their Voices” are similar in one important way.

They are both about the Holocaust, and they’ll come to life Saturday at 7:30 p.m. on the stage of the newly renovated Lyric Theatre, benefiting both the Birmingham Holocaust Education Center and Birmingham AIDS Outreach.

“Remember Their Voices” is two one-act song cycles. The first, “I Never Saw Another Butterfly,” is filled with poems and artwork created by children in the Terezin children’s concentration camp; the second, “For a Look or a Touch,” a song cycle that premiered in 2013, is the real-life story of two gay men in Nazi Germany, told through the journal one of them kept during that time.

“It’s based on this small journal that Manfred gave to his partner, Gad, in about 1941,” director Dane Peterson says of “For a Look or a Touch,” which features Daniel Seigel, Drew Tombrello, pianist Lester Seigel, violinist Daniel Szasz and members of the Alabama Symphony Orchestra. “It starts out simply and almost childlike and progresses to really show his maturity and how fast Manfred had to become an adult with all he was facing in Nazi Germany.”

Gad, portrayed by Tombrello, is an elderly man facing death but revisiting his early years through Manfred’s journal.

“He’s going back to this treasure he has kept close to his heart throughout his life,” Peterson says. “Some is fact, and some of it is historical fiction.”

Jane Seigel directs “I Never Saw Another Butterfly,” featuring Szasz and Lester Seigel along with sopranos Kristin Kenning and Erin Moore.

“It’s equally as powerful” as “For a Look or a Touch,” Peterson says. “She’s got great singers and actors and is using the actual artwork created by children in concentration camps to tell the story of the Holocaust.”

Peterson hopes that the night of “Remember Their Voices” will “give people an understanding of what happened and what should not happen again.”

“Audiences who come will be terrifically moved by both pieces,” he says. “It’s a lot to remember and to learn from.”

“Remember Their Voices,” at the Lyric Theatre on Saturday, March 5, at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $25 and benefit the Birmingham Holocaust Education Center and Birmingham AIDS Outreach. Call 205-216-3118.

Alabama Spotlight focuses on the stories of Alabamians in the performing arts, both on stage and behind the scenes, in-state and in far-flung places. Longtime Alabama entertainment journalist Alec Harvey tells their stories. Email him comments, as well as suggestions on people to profile, at auburn84@gmail.com.