Yiddish Theatre

Yiddish theatre includes pieces written and performed primarily by Jewish writers and actors in the Yiddish language. It covers a broad range of theatrical work, including plays, musicals, operettas, revues, and melodrama. The birth of Yiddish theatre is acknowledged to have begun in 1876, with the first professional Yiddish theatre troupe established by Abraham Goldfaden in Iaşi, Romania. Common themes in Yiddish drama tend to include ancestry, folklore, immigration, cultural integration, and poverty. This guide will explore the development of Yiddish theatre and its influence upon popular culture.

Key Dates, Events, & Genres

• 1876 - Abraham Goldfaden established the first professional Yiddish theatre troupe in Iaşi,Romania.
• 1878 - Abraham Goldfaden’s play Di Kishefmakhern (either The Sorceress or The Witch) marked the stage debut of Jacob Adler, who would go on to become one of New York’s most celebrated Yiddish actors and producers.
• 1878 - Israel Rosenberg established the first professional Yiddish theatre troupe in Russia.
• 1883 - Yiddish theatre was banned in Russia, forcing many performers and writers to leave Russia. The ban was lifted in 1904.
• 1903-1906 - A violent wave of pogroms swept across southern Russia, leaving thousands dead and forcing many to flee their home country.
• 1915 - The National Yiddish Theatre Folkesbiene (NYTF) was established in New York City.
• 1919 - The Moscow Yiddish Theatre was established in Petrograd (later known as the Moscow State Jewish Theatre). It was shut down in 1948 by the Soviet government.
• 1920 - S. Ansky’s hugely influential play The Dybbuk premiered in Warsaw in 1920.
• 1964 - Fiddler on the Roof premiered on Broadway.
• 1987 - The premiere of the Off-Broadway musical On Second Avenue, celebrating the heyday of the Yiddish Theatre District.
• 2019 - NYTF staged a Yiddish production of Fiddler on the Roof (Fidler Afn Dakh) at the Off-Broadway theatre Stage 42.