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Jan 19, 2016

A tribute to Sonia Lizaron

Arnold Zable

Delivered at her funeral service, 26 August 2015.
Jan 04, 2016

Boris Thomashefsky and Aaron Lebedeff

Zachary Baker

A few years ago, while roaming the open stacks of the Stanford University Libraries, I came across a copy of Thomashefsky’s memoir, Mayn lebens-geshikhte (The Story of My Life).
Dec 17, 2015

Interview: Indecent Playwright Paula Vogel and Director Rebecca Taichman

Joel Berkowitz

Paula Vogel’s drama Indecent premiered at the Yale Repertory Theatre in New Haven, Connecticut, in October, and then moved to the La Jolla Playhouse in San Diego, where it just completed its run. Next
Dec 04, 2015

Six Degrees of Yankev Blayfer

Debra Caplan

Yankev Blayfer. Sonia Alomis. Leola Vendorf. Baruch Lumet. Wolf Barzel. Who are these figures and what is their place in history? Their names don’t appear in any theatre history or reference work. The
Nov 17, 2015

The Sholem Asch Festival: Poland Rediscovers a Yiddish Dramatist

David Mazower

Every two years around this time I visit the Polish town of Kutno, for the Jewish festival named after my great-grandfather, the Yiddish writer Sholem Asch.
Oct 26, 2015

Yiddish Lives, Smirks, and Breathes: Restoring Community Theatre into Yiddish History

C. Tova Markenson

Diving off of the raised proscenium stage, I don a fish mask and begin to swim through the audience. “Vu zaynen di fish?” (Where are the fish?).
Jul 02, 2015

A Lost Film, Found

Margaret Compton

I’d never heard of him before, but I’ve found out a few things about Mark Schweid since February.
Jun 29, 2015

The Krakow Yiddish Theatre Postcards - a Crowdsourcing Experiment

David Mazower

Think of the pulsating energy of Motown’s dawn in Detroit. Or the soaring sounds of early jazz in New Orleans.
May 18, 2015

Audiences are Idiots

Faith Jones

One of the hardest problems in theatre studies is understanding audiences response.
Apr 28, 2015

Matzah and Melodrama: Nahum Stutchkoff’s Yiddish Song Lyrics

Amanda (Miryem-Khaye) Seigel

Nahum Stutchkoff (1893-1965) was a beloved Yiddish radio personality, playwright, lyricist and linguist who created dramas and commercials for WEVD radio.
Mar 18, 2015

Russians? Cossacks? Jews? The Russian Imperial Singers Unmasked

David Mazower

Some photographs just make you smile.
Mar 04, 2015

A Writer, a Painter, and Queen Esther

Zachary Baker

For readers of this blog, Purim reminds us that modern Yiddish theatre traces its lineage from the traditional folk drama genre known as the Purim-shpil.