They Graced Our Stages ...
The Yiddish Theatre Troupes,
1910 to 1957
The troupe of "Zol
zayn mazl tov (Wish Me Luck)," which played in New York
City's Second Avenue Theatre, opening on October 25, 1954. |
Throughout the history of the Yiddish theatre, managers have engaged many actors, singers and dancers and brought them together into one hopefully cohesive unit, namely the Yiddish theatre troupe, which would perform in their theatre, and/or play in different places by taking their production “on tour,” or “on the road.” Yiddish theatre troupes of actors and actresses, young and old, were assembled and performed all throughout the United States, Canada and all over the world. These troupes were sometimes organized by the directors of the troupe or the managers of the theatres, were sanctioned by the Hebrew Actors' Union, or by other means. Most of the troupes, especially those who performed in the boroughs of Manhattan, Brooklyn and the Bronx in New York City were composed of those who were members of the Hebrew Actors' Union. Conversely, those who spent their season in other big cities and small towns were non-union, although not those troupes that originated in New York City and went on tour, mostly when the regular theatre season was over. Here, in this exhibition, you will see photographs of nearly fifty Yiddish theatre troupes, which for the most part performed at one time in the United States. When possible, the members of these troupes have been identified, but of course, many remain unidentified to the Museum of the Yiddish Theatre. The Museum will attempt to furnish interesting details about the troupe, its members, the plays and repertory that they performed, as well as other information that you might find interesting, perhaps making available songs performed by members of the troupes during the particular season. This should be very enjoyable! Just click on any of the photograph's captions to see (and perhaps here) more ... |
List courtesy
of YIVO (Yiddish Institute for Jewish Research).
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