Yiddish Proletarian Theatre: The Art and Politics of the Artef, 1925-1940 0313290636, 9780313290633

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YIDDISH PROLETARIAN THEATRE

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Cover page of the Artef booklet issued opening night of At the Gate, December 16, 1928. Artist: William Cropper.

YIDDISH PROLETARIAN THEATRE THE ART AND POLITICS OF THE AKI'EE 1925—1940

Edna Nahshon

Contributions in Drama and Than-e Studia, Number 8.5

GREENWOOD PRESS 0 London

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Yiddish prolehrim meme : the art And politic of the Altai. 1975-19“) / Edna Nahshon. m—(Contrlbufiom in drum and (Dream midis, I$N p. 0163—3821 ; no. 82) Includes bibliographical referents and Index. ISBN 0413-2909-6011. paper) 1. There: Yiddish—New York (Scam—New York—History—Nth century. 2. And—History L “Me. 1']. Series. PN3035.N28 1998 98-15599 792.089’92407471—«21

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Liar-try of Congress Catalog Card Number. 98-1559 ISBN: HIS-M634 ISN: 0163-3321

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This work is dedicated to the memory of my mother, ZiDah Eidelman (née Ieanette Pauker), whose love and wisdom have been myfountain of strength.

CONTENTS Foreword by Jula Dassin Preface

xi

Acknowledgments

XV

Prom Socialism to Communism Toward a Jewish Worker-5' Theatre

The Studio

Early Productions

84361 5.

The Rise and Fall of the Permanent Theatre

Facing America Russian Imports

E é fi x 9 § 5 < Z I= ~

From American Documentary to Socialist Realism Victory on Broadway Toward a Professional Theatre The Days of the Popular Front At the Daly Theatre, 1937-38

Resurrection and Demise

89 103 117

131

151 171

187

Appendix: Major Arte! Productions Bibliosnphy

215

Index

247 Photo-essay follows page 74.

209

POREWORD

The story of the Artet is a tale of heroism, laughter, and magic. For years a group of wide-eyed idealist: were responsible for some of the best theatre of that time in New York. This group of zealots worked at their various jobs by day, and found the energy and inspiration to create productions, some of which made history. The wonder of it was their survival. It was a great and rare day when people could be paid. Yet there was always enthusiasm, good cheer, and miraculous energy. The great fortune, the biasing, was the leadership of Benno Schneider. 1 havelived a long life.Ihave seen theatre all over the world. Inmy pantheon of great directors, the of name Benno Schneider has a place of honor. Jules Darrin

Director. Melina Mertouri Foundation Athens, Greece

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PREFACE

The Yiddish theatre arrived in the United State in 1882, and before long atablished itself as a cultural magnet that was passionately embraced by the rapidly growing immigrant Jewish community. The meager statistics that we have attest to this. In 127, two years after immigration had come to a virtual halt, there were eleven Yiddish theatres in New York. A decade later, during the 1937539.?9399' when Yiddish theatre in America was well past its prime, one and half million tickets to Yiddish shows were sold in New York alone. Such per-apita figures were unmatched by any other ethnic gmup in the city. Second Avenue, the Yiddish equivalent of a Broadway, was bustling scene, with each of its four flagship theatra offering a seating capacity ranging from 1200 to 2WD. Meanwhile, smaller theatra established themselves in Brooklyn and in the Bronx, and a score of dramatic amateur clubs, usually affiliated with labor unions and an array of social and cultural organizations, proliferated. The Yiddish Rialto of the 1205 brimmed with activity. It produced celebrated stars, generated a wealth of dramatic material, and offered a wide choice of productions, ranging from run-of-the-mill melodramas to sophisticated artistic experi-

some

a

ments.

Unlike many of the great theatres of Europe that were subsidized by the

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state or an aristocratic elite, the Yiddish stage was a genuine people’s theatre. Dependent for its economic survival on the patronage of a community of working-class immigrants, it catered to their taste and reflected

their value, interests, and concerns. Practically all the social and political issua with which the community struggled, be it acculturation and assimilation, anti-Semitism or working conditions, were represented and debated on the Yiddish stage. Moreover, the theatre’s role was not limited to the reflection of societal concerns. Given its immense popularity, it was also a shaper of public opinion and took an active part in the great debates of the immigrant Iewish community. Harold Clurman, one of the central figures

of the modern American stage, recognized this role and the uniquely close stage-auditorium relationship that typified the Yiddish theatre world. Writing in 1968, with the Yiddish theatre in America nearly extinct, he observed

debh Pmn Theatre

xii

that during the period of mass immigration the theatre, ”even more than the synagogue or the lodge,” functioned as ”the meeting place and the forum of the Jewish community irn America” (1968, p. 56). In the 1920s,whern communism enteredthe discourse of American Jewry, it was natural for this new voice to find exprasion on the stage, and to everntually create its own theatrical irnstitution that would reflect its ideology and serve is constituents. This daire led to the establishment of the Arbeter Teater Farband, better known by is acronym, Artef. The New Emmetwasa Yiddish workers’ art theatre that operated within the orbit of American Jewish communison prirncipally during the Depression years. It was one of the most prominernt organizations of the American Yiddish stage, and in 1934 it broke the ethrnic barrier with is sensational Broadway production of Recruits. From that momernt on, the Artef unanimously recognized as one of the pillars of the Theatre of Social Consciousrnas of the 19305, a movemernt that redefined the course for the American stage during the half century that followed. This recognition has occasioned mention but not elaboration in theatre history books. Indeed, an examination of the literature on the American theatre of the 19305 shows that, with the shift from memoirs and eyewitness accouns to books written by the subsequent generation of scholars, the name Artef appears with decreasing frequency This irncreased inattention is not the outcome of a carefully thought-out reevaluation of the company’s importance; nor is it the rsult of a deliberate remapping of the theatrical landscape of the 19305. This demotion is simply the accidental outcome of the inaccssibility of source materials, mostly written irn Yiddish, to Englishlanguage scholars. As Yiddish declined and as those who remembered passed away, the Artef lost is voice, and the roar that it was dimirnished to a fairnt whisper. The Artef has fared somewhat better instudies of the Yiddish theatre. The two major surveys — David 5. Lifson’s The Yiddish Theatre in America (1965) and Nahma Sandrow’s Vagabond Stars: A World History of Yiddish Theater (1977) include more substantial material. Lifson devotes one of his fourteen chapters to the Artef, and Sandrow discusses its gerneral outlines irn her chapter on Yiddish theatre irn twentieth-century America. TheEmary source of these worls'rs the volume Tsen Yor Artef [Ten Years afAr-tef], published:in 1937 by the company irn oelefiatiorn of its ternth anniversary. Altlnough this publication'rs an important source that offers historical material and valuable information — such as biographical sketches of the actors, a full list of productions, a detailed bibliography, and numerous good-quality photographs — is use as a sirngle source is limiting and to some degree misleading. For one thing, it obviously does not provide irnforrrnation on the activities of the Artef after 1937. It also tends to have the self-congratulatory tone typical of such publications. Finally, and perhaps most important, it is writtern from the vantage point of the Popular Front

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pefiod,whenther£calnatureofdneArtef,athhodnetl-neamsonthe

far left, was deenphasm'favor of a more liberal mairnstream approach. Although the Artef reached maturity and fame during this period, is artistic style and organizational character had been shaped inn is earlier years, and to a large extent had already been determined before the company tame irnto being. Even if we discredit some of the slogans that were heralded in its infancy as overzealous propaganda, there can be no doubt that Artef’s politial orientation and affiliation were essential to is style, and played a major role in influencing is selection of repertoire, is organization as a permanent collective of actors, is emphasis on ensemble acting, and isintimate relationship with is politically homogeneous audience. The thesis of this book is that, only when seen within the framework of Ameican Jewish communism does the artistic and organizational lnistory of the Artef prsent itself as a cohaive continuum rather than an episodic seria of seemingly unrelated productions. hunThe most valuable source mateials for the history of the Artef dreds of article, scripts, letters, playbills, programs, photographs, and stationery and ticket sample have been diligently collected by Moyshe Friedman, an Artef founder. The Friedman Collection is looated irn the arclnive of the YIVO Institute for Jewish Research. in addition, I found important materials irn the collections of Lube Rymer, Jacob Mestel, and H. leiviclt, also loated at Yl'VO. Some primary sources were found at the Lincoln Center library for the Performing Arts, the New York Public Library, the Tamiment Library at New York Urniversity, and the Museum of the City of New York. Iwas also privileged to have access to the private collection of Ms. Sabell Bender of [.05 Angels. The interviews conducted with a number of former Artef affiliates were most helpful irn finding the inner spirit of the subject and in humanizing the evens of the past. Given the fleeting nature of past evens, especially theatrical performance,Imade the stylistic decision to liberally use original quotations, often no more than snippes, which Ihope will evoke the ambienoe and texture of the period and productions discussed in this book.

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A Note on Transliteration This manuscript follows the standard system of transliteration provided by the YIVO Institute for Jewish Research. Some liberties were taken in order to facilitate the reading of this work. [In the use of personal names, popular and English spellings are used. Name of American personalities, places, and organizations that appear irn romanizedYiddish titles retaintheir original English spellings (e.g., Carnegie Hall, Madison Square Garden). Transliterations of names used by individuals and organizations are untouched

xiv

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even when irn conflict with the standard system (e.g., Fneiheit, Der Hammer). Yiddish name of organizations are capitalized as is customary in English. All translations from the Yiddish, unles otherwise indicated, are made by the author of this work.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Iwish to express my gratitude to the persons who helped me irn this work. Sabell Bender and her late husband Morrie Molotrnik welcomed me into their home and their live, and generously put at my disposal their stories, their connectiorns, and their personal archive. Special thanks go to the individuals who wee involved with the Artef (many who are no longer with us) for graciously sharing their menorie and obsevations: Joseph Buloff, Carl Don, Dina Drut and her husband Miclnael Gorin (formerly Mikhl Goldstein), Heshl Gendl, Jacob Gostinsky, Abraham Hirshbein, Sam leve, Maurice Ranch and his wife lillian Shapiro, Hershl Rosen, and Max Sdnneiderman (in New York), Fulye Cherner, N. C. Nagoshiner, DavidOpatoshu, Yitskhok F. Ranch, Manya Shrogin, Shayke Sl'ntrauss, Riva Solotaroff, and Benjamin Zemach (inCalifonnia). Iam indebted to Marek Web, Chief Archivist at fine YIVO Institute for Jewish Reearch, and to Archivist Frurrna Mohrer, who gave generously of fineir time and knowledge. Special thanks go to Professors Brooks McNamara, Barbara KirshenblattGimblett, and Nahma Sandrow, who read parts of this manuscript in an earlie version. Ialso thank Paul Glasse, who helped me with transliteration of some of fine Yiddish title, Jane Lerner, my editor at Greenwood Press, arnd the one and only Tim Oliver. lam grateful to Paul Buhle for permission to use his translation of David Ignatoff's ”Oyf veygte veg-n.” Iam honored that Jules Dassirn wrote the Foreword. He began his acting caree at the Artef Theatre and gained international renown as the writer, director, and producer of more than twenty feature films, including The Naked City (1948), Rififi (1955), Never on Sunday (1960), Phaedra (1960), and prkapi (1964), some of them starring his wife, Melina Mecouri. lastly,Iwish to thank my husband, Gad, and my son, Ken, for their love, patience, and support.

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ChapterI

FROM SOCIALISM TO COMMUNISM

rn tlne years from 18-81 to 1975 rnearly three and a half million Jews, three-quarters of them from the Russian and Polish sections of the Czarist empire, emigrated to fine United States. The majority of these Yiddish-speaking East European newcomers settled irn eastern cities, notably New York City, their original port of arrival; in 1915 there were 1,400,000 Jews in New York, about thirty-nine percent of is residens.‘ Gravitating toward neighborhoods with dense Jewish populations, most of thee immigrants concentrated in the boroughs of Manhattan and Brooklyn. The larget group resided on the Lower East Side of Manhattan, an area of twenty-five squareblocks representing one eighty-second of the city's land 542,061 inhabitans.‘ areaan containirng irn 1910 some This'l-nighly congested pafin of concrete and tenement buildings became the nerve-center of Jewish immigrant life in Ameria. During this period of mass immigration the American Jewish community developed a__p_rp:leftisLsertiment and created myriad organizations that became thflaackbone of a Jewish socialist subculture. Arthur Liebman obseved irn his comprehensive sociohistorical study Jews and the id! that thissogalrsflbgrlhrre, commonly refered to as the Jewish labor movement, was unique irn the sense that it was botln ethrnic and political.’ He explained that though it was but one of several subcultures that existed within the Jewish-American community, and always had a minority status, is leaders wee nevertheless able to rouse and propel irnto action large segments of the Jewish population on behalf of particular cause and issues. During is heyday, irn the early decades of the twentieth century, the Jewish labor movernent was a force to contend with, and particularly irn

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New York City assumed a leadership role wifinin the Jewish community. lived within its geographical scope could conduct theirliv_a almost entirely within is ideological and structural confine. A'ccordflng to Liebman,twoirnstitutional factors enabled fine formation of a tightly knit and relatively self-contained Yiddish-speaking community. One was the rich network of organizations, bofin religious and secular, established by the immigrant Jewish community irn the United States. The second factor was the arment industry, whose employers and employees were predomirnan y ew e rapid expansion of this industry made it possible for large numbes of new arrivals to find jobs within its ranks. Usually located in Jewish neighborhoods, the industry allowed Yiddishspeaking immigrans to live in their own economic world for several decades. By providing the commurnity wifin a nearly self-sufficient econonnic enterprise, the garment industry also helped to isolate it and finus, according to Liebman, ”strengfinened the coherence of an homogenous and Eulated sub-cultu~rewithin America.“ Of particular importance to the creation of fine Jewish left was the second wave of immigration that, between 1904 and 1914, brought 1;2oo,ooo Jewish immigrans to fine United States. This mass exodus from Russia after the began notorious pogrorn in Kishinev,Besarabia, organized by fine CzaristaufinoritisInApril 1903. Immigrationwas further prompted by fine succession of violent pogronns in the Pale of Settlement, the area where Jews were legally permitted to live in the Czarist empire.’ The need to emigrate became even more vital after fine failure of fine 1905 Revolution, which led to subsequent policies of official reaction and anti-Semitism. The immigrants who came irn this wave wee younger, more secular, and _r;nore urban than finose Jews who remairned in Russia. Many came from the most_ industrialized and urbanized area of the Pale, where fine Bund, fine socralrst Jewish movement, hadis greatet influence.‘ Thousands of finose who came hadbeer_n involvedin the Jewish labor movement irnRussia. Some had taken part in fine revolutionary underground in their hometowns. Ofinens had participatedl.l'| self-defense unis organized during fine pogroms. Some radicals had even been political prisoners who had spent time irn Siberia or in Czar-ist jails. Radicals and socialist irntellectuals, in fact, represented a significant proportion of this immigration. Unlike fine leftist intellectuals of the former "generation, they saw no discrepancy between their Jewishnas and their socialism. On tlne contrary, finese two elemens were seen to have been complementary and mutually nourishing. In a formal political sense, Jews in America associated with socialism finrough the Socialist Party. Formed in 1901, the party originally had a strong American character. lrn 1912, at the zenith of is appeal, it had an imprasive, broadly based membership of 1880107 Shortly thereafter, however, it went finrough a rapid change in is composition. It began to lose

Jews who

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its American stock. and the foreign-hem became the majority In 1919 more than half of the party’s 108,504 members belonged to foreign-language federations that had been formed with the party’s consent by the many immigrants who swelled its ranks.‘ In 1915 there were fifmen sudi federations, including the Jewish Socialist Federation These federations maintained largely autonomous lives, coming into contact with other units of the party only through a body of delegate such as a city committee. By 1920, Jews and their organizations constituted the major base of support for the Socialist Party. The Jewish needle trade unions, especially the International ladia’ Garment Workers’ Union (ILGWU), came to provide major organized labor support for socialism. The Jewish garment unions, in fact, were the most important unions in the country and, until

1936,dieywereallheadedbysodalistsympatiuzersoninthecaseofflie International Fur Workers’ Union, by communists. The rapid growth of the garment industry, with its harsh working conditions, and the steady influx of immigrants, had made thee predominantly Jewish unions firmly atablished as early as 1910 and led to a round of major strikes that lasted until 1912. Thae strikes created a new chapter in the history of labor relations in the United State, with the unions emerging victorious and ever stronger as supporters of socialisn in America.’ The second wave of immigration was also a major factor in the rapid growth of the fraternal movement, which would occupy a central place both in the Jewish labor movement and Jewish life in general. The Workmai’s Circle, by far the largat and most important fraternal order, started modstly in 1892 Within its framework, the left-oriented Yiddish-speaking immigrants found friendship, mutual aid, an anchor, and a steppingstone in their new land. Between 1905 and 1915 the Workmen’s Circle’s membership grew sevenfold. By 1915 it had reached 50,00), in 1918, 60,00), and by 1975 the order had a membership of 86,000 people and assets of more than 9030,01), making it one of the largst and wealthiest Jewish bodies in the ; United State.” As a rsult of the rise within the order of former Bundists who regarded socialism and as Yiddishkayt, the largely proletarian culture at the heart of which stood Yiddish, mutually supportive, the Workmen’s Circle became, after 1916, one of the most influential propagators of Jewish culture in the United States. It published books in Yiddish on a wide array of subjects, supported Yiddish lectures, and successfully reached the younger generation by creating educational institutions such as summer camps, youth groups, choruses, dramatic clubs, and above all, a network of afternoon sd'iools that after 1918 strssed both socialism and Yiddishkayt. Approximately 75,(D0 children attended thae schools between 1918 and 1934.“ The Workmen’s Circle, the Jewish Socialist Federation, the United Hebrew Trades — the delegate body of the Jewish labor unions — and the Jewish Daily Forward were all housed in the Forward building on 175 East

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YIddthIolcflrhn Thanh.

Broadway in lower Manhattan. Completedrn 1908, this structure toweed _o_ve_r ”the Lower East Side, symbolizing the cohesive and interlinkedjewish socialist organizational life. The Jewish Daily Forward, founded in New York irn 1897 as an inde pendent socialist daily, was the preerrninent Yiddish newspaper in the country, with a circulation in 1917 of about 200,000.“ The newspaper assumed a leadership position in guiding the immigrant commurnity in a variety of subjectsfrom basic instruction in table manners to guideline about how to behave during strike, how to become a citizen, and how to votefor socialist candidate. It also helped maintain irnstitutions that were part of the Jewish socialist subculture: radio station WEVD, the magazine New border, the League of Industrial Democracy, the Rand School, various summer camps, and the Socialist Party itself.“ The Forward’s editorial policy was shaped by its first and long-time editor Abraham Cahan, a manwho was flexible, and undogmatic, and who propagated what some felt was watered-down socialism. His aim was to reach as broad a readership as possible, and one way of achieving it was to model the Forward afte the format of the succssful popular journalism of Pulitzer’s World and Hearst’s American. Light and entertaining feature appeared regularly in the paper. These included reports of crimes, serializations of romantic novels, and celebrity gossip. The best-known light feature was the Bintl an, a section devoted to letters sent by readers about their romantic and family problems. After 1912 the paper reflected the increasingly moderate, middle-of-meroad spirit of American socialism, which was gradually becoming reformist in nature. Many disappointed radicals felt frustrated by the failure of the so-called socialist nerve.“ Dissatisfaction reigned alsoin the cultural sphere and was directed largely at the Forward as the community’s cultural and political tone-setter. Not only was the newspaper severely criticized by radical circles for gradually diluting the spirit of socialism, its literary were also heavily attacked by an intelligentsia angered by its

standards

reflected

namely, s_ir_npl_._i.fied Yiddish full of Americanisms. The practice Cahan’s conviction that, in the long run, Yiddish had no future irn the United States and that Americaniration was the right course for the immigrant Jewish community. The ex-Bundists, with their deep commitment to Yiddishkayt, repudiated Cahan’s assimilationist views as defeatist and negative. Indeed, the frustrations on the political and cultural scenes were so intertwined that Alexander Bittleman, the leading Marxist theoretician of American communism, had to remind his audience at a lecture he was giving that radicals ”fight the Forward not merely and mainly because it is not a decent literary paper, but because it serves the reactionary and treacherous leadership of the labor movement.”

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The ovethrow of the C7ar_i_n_Pebruary of 1917we celebrated with great joy by GE immigrant Jewish community in America: the nrle of official reaction, anti-Semitism, and state-sponsored pog'roms had finally been terminated. Poet David lgnatoff captured the jubilant spirit of the day:

l/

All the coffee house in the Rueian quarter wee ave-flowing with people, with song. with bright eye and bright gaze It is the Russian Revolution! The Revolution has triumphed! The truth has triumphed! The truth of the folk, the truth, the great truth of humankind Of Revolution!"

K

The Forward ran festive banner headline: ”Jewish Troubles at an End, Full Rights for All Oppressed Nationalities, New light Rises over Russia.” Editor Abraham Cahan exclaimed, ”Maul Tov to Our Jewish People; Mazel Tov to the Entire World.” Electrified by the rapid mm of events, the Lower East Side was simmering with excitement, nostalgia, and mmfic Elationary fraternity. Those who had participated in anti-Czarist activitie in thein: homeland felt invigorated by the fulfillment of what had seemed just yeterday like a mesianic dream. The etablishmernt of a socialist Soviet republic the following October spurred a renewal of faith in the radical sector. The fact that a workers’ state could be established irn Russia, the most backward of all European nations, seemed like the ultimate proof that the total victory of socialism was imminent. The excitement over these prospects gave rise to a small movement in Jewish revolutionary and intellectual circle to return to Russia." At first, the Jewish community at large was undecided about the new Soviet regime, especially after the communists began to close house of worship and expropriate small businesses. This vacillation, however, would soon come to an end: as civil war broke out, vicious pogroms swept over the Ukraine and Southem Russia, leading to the murder of tens of thousands of Jews and to the total destruction of erntire communitie by the White armies and their supporters. The Soviet authorities responded to these atrocitie by issuing a decree condemning anti—Semitism, calling for its total eradication, and defining it as a crime against the state, purnishable by law. A strong appeal by Lenin against anti-Semitism was even made into a recording-Mt was played in village and army barracks. Thus, nomatter Me‘fgllower of current events stood politically, one thing became cl_e_ar__amidst the pillage and the devastation: when the Red Army assumed ggrltEILanti-Jewish acts stopped immediately The success of the Revolution had a deep effect on the leftist Jewish immigrants in the United States and exacerbated the dissatisfaction preva-

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lent among finern. Many of them became deeply disappointed by fine AmerEpstein explained: _ ica they had

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An additional factor, post—World Warl immigration, was instrumental in creating an increasingly radical course for a large segment of Jewish leftists. This last major wave of Jewish newcomers was mudn smaller finan its predecssors, yet more intense in its political awareness. Between 1920 and 1930, 354,246 Jews immigrated to the Urnited States. Most of them came between 1920 and 124, before Jewish immigration was curtailed by fine Johnson Act.11 A large ségment of finese post-war immigrants wenTto work in‘fiié'sFops and, being proletarians, young, and un-Ameicanized, wee easily drawn to the radical amp.” Following the Revolution, strong pro-Bolshevik sentiments developed among the younge element of the Socialist Party in America. The first leftist group of the federation broke away from fine party in 1919, three months before the official birth of fine American communist movement in Chicago, May 29 to June 1, 1919.This small group of secssionists had little impact on fine Jewish community: finey wee young and did not hold important positiorns wifinin fine Jewish labor movement. But as ideological discord, accompanied by intergenerational antagonism, began to mount, a second split became unavoidable, and in 1921, the majority of the Jewish Federation quit the Socialist Party. Among finose who left were almost all the intellectuals of the fedeation and the second layer of leadership, which was irn daily contact wifin fine mass of Jewish workers. Thee dissidents were radical but not necessarily communist in their views, and some of them had grand plans to build a new proletarian party. However, they ended up joining the Workers’ Party, a front for fine communist movenent in America, and wee reunited with the 1919 secessiornists. Within a short while finey became part and parcel of fine American Communist Party. This road from organized socialism to communism was by no means unique to fine Jewish left. The Ame-ian communist movement grew, in fact, out of fine purges conducted by fine leadership of the Socialist Party in 1919, whicln initiated the suspension and expulsion of left-wingers. About two-thirds of fine Socialist Party’s membership were kicked out during these purges. In January 1919, fine Socialist Party had a membership of 109,589.” Six months later fine figure went down to 39,750.“ Those 70,000 err-socialists wee the reservoir of American communism.

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It was irn anticipation of an approaching revolution finat fine American exasocialists and ofiner radials had veered toward communism.” Indeed, in fine years just following fine October Revolution, fine communists were convinced finat fine collapse of apitalism was imminent arnd that Europe

andAmeicawereornfinebrinkofaclarmwanTheywereencomagedirn

fineir convictions by fine social restlessnes finat was spreading over Europe: in January 1919 fine Spartacus Bund held Berlin for ten days and irn March Bela Kuhn declared a Soviet republic irn Bavaria. Even fine American labor scene was seefining wifin refiesnness after the conclusion of World War 1: a round of major strike, among finem strike against fine vital steel and coal industrie, took place, and on January 21, 1919, America experienced its first general strike in Sealer" Neverfiieles, though a numbe of American native intellectuals were arried away by fine new prospects for a world order, American communism, like its socialist parent, was predominantly foreign-born, and its main force was fine foreign-language fedeations. The moverrnent, of which seventy percent of fine membes wee East Europeans, was finus irn fine hands of people who wee captivated by fine Russian model of revolution, and who had little understanding of fine United State. The govenment reponded to fine 1919 inauguration of fine communist movenent wifin an intense campaigrn of anti-radical raids. As a reult of fine raids, arrets, and deportations, fine communists wee forced to go undeground and lost a large pecentage of their membership. ln 1920 Secretary of labor William B. Wilson declared fine Commurnist Party illegal. In re sponse, in January 192, fine Workers' Party, an open, modeate coalition finat included noncommunist allie, we launched. By the end of fine year fine Workers’ Party became increasingly communist dominated, and in 1973 fine communist underground was abolished. The cycle came full circle in August 1925 when fine party’s name was changed to fine Workers’ (Communist) Party of America, fine American Section of fine Communist lntemational. The noncommnmist left was absorbed, and fine communist victory was absolute. But fine party did not fare well irn its recruitment. Membership reached an all time low of 7,20) irn 1925,and after finat it grew slowly, readning 9,300 in March 1929. The exact numbe of Jewish members is not clear, sirnce bofin fine party and fine U.S. Govenment were reluctant to comment publicly on finis issue, but finee is little doubt finat they were represented to a disproportionate degree wifinin fine ranks and leadership of the Commurnist Party. Theodore Draper estimated that fifteen percent of the party during fine 19205 was Jewish.” In fine 19305 Jewish membership rose, and until fine 19505 was estimated by some tocornstituteasmuchasfor-ty tofifty "

percent.”

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Ylddbh Plobmlhn Thea"!

During fine pre-Depression decade, communism made little headway irn America and had only a negligible impact on fine political and social life of the natiorn. However, fire situation in fine Jewish commurnity was diffeent: fine 19205 wee a turbulent and dramatic era for immigrant Jews, during which fine hegemony of established socialism was seriously challenged by fine communists, who came wifinin a hair’s breadfin of assuming leadership wifinin fine Jewish community. This bitter internal rift, which had readied fine proportion of an all-out civil war, divided fine Jewish labor movement irnto two rival coalitions the right was composed of conservatye sodal_ists, urniorn derrnocrats, FmH—péoplzand fineir sympafinizers; the left was irTa'an—rpfil'communists, radical socialists, anarchists, syndicafists, progresive, and their followers. ‘Tfié‘s'nuggne was conducted on all fronts industrial, cultural, and political. As it went on, fine left tried to take over fine organizational network of fine labor movement and also established its own new irnstitutions. Thee, in turn, provided fine structure of fine new radical subculture that was patterned after fire socialist model, wifin its major components being fine party, fine urnion, fine fraternal organization, and fine press. The irntemecine warfare finat raged irn fine garment unions between 1923 and 1928 represented fine most violent and ferocious aspect of fine battle between left and right over fine hegemony of fine Jewish labor movement. The six-monfin—long strike of fine 12,000 members of fine communist-con— trolled Inter-national Fur Workers’ Union finat began on February 16, 1926, and fine twenty-six-week-long strike of 50,000 l'LGWU members finat began on July 26 of fine same year shook fine garment industry and fine traditional bastions of organized labor irn America. Though fine ILGWU strike was mishandled by fine communists and eventually ended wifin a Pyrrhic victory by fine right, its effects were devastating morally, financially, and

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industrially.

Moreover, fine fight for supremacy between fine dissident left and fine ruling right was simultaneously taking place irn all spheres of Jewish life, including post-war relief, education, culture, and fine fraternal movement. For example, fine more aggressive the fight in fine unions became, fine more intense fine fight wifinin fine Workmen’s Circle grew. 1n fine summer of 1926, fine left took over twenty-six of fine finirty’parochial schools of fine Workmen’s Circle, the o_rder’s center irn Harlem, and its large children’s camp, Kinderland, located on Sylvan lake, New York. It must be notedthat many

of fine irntellectuals connected with these educational institutions were inclined to the left, largely because of fineir concern for Yrddish culture. In the middle of 1929 fine Cominterrn removed its anti-dual urnion dictum and the left was able to form its own fraternal organization, fine International Workers Order (1W0), a multinational body in which the Jews were always fine largest ethrnic group. The MO started wifin 30,000 members in

FmSafllsmfoConmnsm

9

1930. By 1947it had 60,C00 Jewish mernbes, who constituted about a finird of is geneal membeslnip.

'I'heJewishsectiornoffineIWOstoodatfineheartoftheculturaland

educational activitie of fine radical Jewish left. It sponsored social evens, lectures, courses, choruse, and amateur drama groups, and operated Yiddish parochial schools as well as summer camps for childrenand adults. Funds generated by the 1WD supported various irnstitutions within fine communist orbit. Major benefactors wee the Daily Worker and fine Yiddisln communist daily, fine Frtiheit. The order also sponsored fund-raising appeals for causes such as fine Scotsboro Boys, and antiwar campaigrns, and for fine training of soldies who volunteered to fight in fine Spanish Civil War. The links between fine [WC and the Communist Party eventually brought about is liquidation by governmental aufinoritie: in 1947 it was placed on fine Attorney General’s list of subversive organizations, and it was later stripped of is char'te to sell insurance; in 1954 it was liquidated and all is asses seized. The printed word also played a major role in the battle between left and right, with fine Jewish labor press serving as a ”trumpeter calling for action, a teacher and an organizer.” The two major orgarns for fine feuding amps were fine Forward for the right and fine newly founded Freiheit for fine left. There was no contest between fine two dailie irn terms of readership: in the 19205, fine Forward had reached a circulation of about 200,000, whereas the fledgling Freiheit, at fine peak of the struggle, never went beyond a circulation of 14,000, including 1800 irn Canada.” The Freilm't’s readership reached its highest point in 1930, when it reported an annual circulation of 64,011, most likely an irnflated number." The Freiheit, like the Workers' Party iself, started in 1922 as a coalition of miss and communists and by 1975 became an official organ of fine CornmunistParty. Organizationally and politically, the Freiher'f did not have fine autonomy on which fine Forward always insisted. As late as fine 19505, it was clearly a party enterprise. The Freihe't was not a dry political paper. Followirng the model of the Yiddish press, it included feature articles, novels, short stories, poems — bofin original and in translation — and literary reviews. From is very beginrning it attracted an impressive group of contributors who enriched is literary content, notably H. Leivick, Moshe Nadir, Moyshe teyb Halpernn, David lgnatoff, Isaac Raboy, Baruch Glazman, and Marni Leib. Abraham Reizirn joined two years later. No Yiddish paper could even come close to such an array of talent. These writers, most of them noncommurniss, were attracted to fine paper because of is high literary standards, and were excited by fine resurgence of Yiddish culture irn Russia. According to Melech Epstein, finey felt finat by writing for fine Freilrer‘l they "actively supported and cooperated wifin the cultural efforts in Russia.”:2

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Yiddish Prototarian Theatre

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The readership of fine Freflreit young, lively, and responsive was also a major source of attraction. At literary evenings and forums, held regularly by a wide-ranging net of educational and social clubs, dramatic groups, and summer camps, finee writes could meet and interact with fine young, post-war immigrants who were fineir reades. The young members of fine left faction were eager for cnrltnual and social activity. in fine early 19205 many of finern joirned fine Young Workers’ league, fine youfin affiliate of fine Communist Party. Not yet domirnated by rigid doctrines, fine communist movement left enough space for pesonal expression wifinin is general political framework. Consequently, a rich network of Young Workers' League affiliate branche and clubs developed: irn 1924, when a conference of fine Jewish branches was called, between sixty and seventy groups responded. In 1975, wifin fine growfin of bolshevization, finese efinnic clubs wee dissolved, yet many of fineir members spontaneously reorganized irn clubs that also came under party control. In his book, Melech Epstein described fine physical layout of a typical club while inadvertenfiy poirnting at fine promirnent role of the pe'forming arts in is roster of activities: A club usually occupied a floor in an office or apartment buildirng. The irnrner walls wee taken out, and a stage built on one side. The walls were painted and decanted wifin pastes and plamrds, and fine ceiling was festoorned wifin colorful crepe paper. Facing fine stage was a buffet for sandwiche and hot and cold drinks, served by fine girls.”

Epsteirn noted finat ”larger clubs also maintained dramafic groups, dance groups, mandolin bands, sport sections, libraries, and the inevitable ’wall newspaper,’ an irnstitution brought over from Russia.”" lrn one Such club irn Brooklyn, fine future Artef Theatre was conceived.

NOTES 1. Compared with 80,003 Jews in 1830, constituting about 10 percent of fine total

city population. See Morn-Ls U. Schappe, "Jewish Mass Immigration from Europe, 1881—1914,” Jewish Life 3/ 10 (November 1954): 20-21.

2. Mose Rischin, The Promised .City;.NanLYa_rkfs .Jews, 1870—1914 (New York: Harper 8: Row, 1W0), pp. 93-94; and Thomas Eessner, The Golden Door: Italian and [wish Immigrant Mobility in New York City, 1889—1915 (New York: Oxfoi'd University Presfl977), pp. 132—34. 3. Arthur Liebman, Jews and the it]? (New York: John Wiley Gr Sons, 1979). 4. l'bid., p. 145.

FmSoddarntoCorr-nnnmn

11

. ltirncludedfineUknirne,Byelonmia,arndfineBalticprovirnce. 8y18”,almoat 43(1),!!!) Jews, about 94 pennant of fineenfire Jewish population in Rusia, lived finee,mnsfituting12peeentoffinegeneralpopulafionoffinearea.

.11neYidinlneArbeterBund,fineJewishWorkea’Fedeafion,waafmmedin Vilna irn 1897. Active in Rush and Poland, it was an exclusively Jewish maven-rent that functioned both as political party and labor union. It stressed a coheent Jewish culture based on Yiddish, and ”autonomy," namely fine formation of Jewish national-cultural grouping wifinirn fine conuntrie where Jews lived.The Burnd was committed to international sodalism and to Jewish

parfidpafiomfinrmrghorganizafiomflydisfinctufismnfinesodafistandhbor movements in fine countrie where Jews raided.

. Melech Epstein, The Jew and Communism (New York: Trade Union Sponsoring Committee, 1959), p. 11.

Liebtrnarn,]eusandthel4t,p.47.

. By 1918, HBWU (fine international bdie' Garment Hbrkers’ Unicm) had

129,311 menbea an is rolls (compared with 73m in 1903,and 58M in 1909); irn 192D, ACWA had 177,!!!) members (compared with 38M in 1915 and 8111!) irn 1919).Similar developments with aorrnewhat [owe growfin rate took

place in fine ofiner uniana as well (ilnid., pp. 212-13). 10. Liebman, Jews and the lefi, p. 288.

11. lsaiathmk, ”1'l'neCultunlDime-naionoffineAmerianJewishlAborMove ment," Yl'VO Annual of Jew'sh San'al Scienm (New York: YIVO institute for Jew'uh Soda] Raurch, 1976),ms“. Jenna and the 14}, p. 326; Mordeai Soltea, The Yiddish Pres.- An Amer-runningAgency (New Yorlc Teachers College Pres,Columbia University, 1950), p. 24. 13. Liebman, Jews and the 141, p. 313. 12. Liebman,

14. Forward, Septembe 1913, quoted in Epstein, Tin Jew and Communism, p. 57. 15. Epstein, The Jew and Conmrnmism, p. 100. 16. David lgnatofi, 'Oy'f veyte veyn" [“On Distant Pafins”], trans. by Paul Buhle, in his ”Jews and American Communism: The Cultural Quetiona," Radial History Review 23 (Spring 1980): 18.

17. Epste'rn. The Jew and Connrmn'sm, p. 73. 18. Ibid. 19. Between 1917 and 1920,21,010 people left fine U5., 3,760 declarirng finemselves as ”Hebrews," 17,355 as "Russians.” Undoubtedly, a large percentage of fine latte wee also Jews. See Irving Howe, Worid of Our Fathers (New York: Sirrnon a Schuater, 1976), P. 326.

. Epstein. Thelmerld Communism, p.57.

21. L Hersch, “Jewish Miyation," in The Jewish People: Past and Present (New York: CYCO, 1946), quoted in Epstein, The Jew and Communism, p. 198.

Yiddthrobmrhn ”leave

12

22. 5. Levenberg, ”Soviet Jewry: Some Problem and Perspective,” The Jews in Soviet Rusia sine 1917 (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1979). P. 39. Settle ment of fine soil, a privilege Jews had been denied for centuries, had been

prucribedsinoefinebeginningofJewishEnlighte-nrnentasa panacea forevery evil that had plagued Jewish life. The enfinusiasm over thee plans was so great that they were supported by fine entire Jewish labor movement, including those who wee veherrnently opposed to communism on the Arnerian scene.

. Liebman,]ewsandthelefi,p.55. .

lbid., p. 56.

25. Quoted in Harvey Klehr, The Heyday ofAmeriaan Communism (New York: Basic Books, 1924), p. 4.

26. Revolutionary flamboyarncewasalsomanifeted innumbes: in its inception fine communist movement, which was started irn the form of two rival parfia, fine Communist Party and fine Communist labor Party, claimed an impressive membership of 50,010 to 60,”. Most scholars agree that finese numbe: wee inflated. According to Theodore Drape, fine true figure wee between 23,“)0 and 301!” for fine Communist Party and 8,003 for fine Communist labor Party. See Theodore Draper, The Roots of American Communism (New York: Viking Press, 1957), p. 189. Theodore Drape, American Commuan and Soviet Russia (New York: Viking Pew, 1960), p. 191. Epstein, quoted irn Lidnman, Jews and the left, p. 59. Epstein, The Jew and Communism, p. 138. Ibid. Liebman, Jews and the befi, p. 346.

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38 .

Epstein, The Jew and Communism, p. 112. lbid., pp. m—zos. lbid., p. 203.

Chapter II

TOWARD A JEWISH WORKERS’ THEATRE

Artef opened its doors as a producing company in December 1928, but fine ideological and practical efforts leading to its formation date back to the early__1_9205, a period in whidn the left was gaining momei'tnin'i”7:113 efl'orts to assume control of fine Jewish labor movement. Seveal trends converged in preparing fine groundwork for fine formation of a Yiddish workers' art fineatre. The first was the growing convictiorn on fine part of the radicalelite finatbecause fine workingclass was oppmsed culturally, it was imperative finat workers control and operate fineir own cultural institutions. The second was the prevalent diasatiataction of fine Yiddishist intelligentsia wifin fine fare offeed by fine Yiddish meafie‘in‘America and its aversion to fine cultural and artistic standards ropa ata' by'ihe l-‘anmrd. The finird active element was fine grassroots workers—who had joined fine radical sector to engage in dramatic activitie that would be compatible with fineir political and social affiliations. As the Jewish left grew, the chiefs of American Jewish communisnn paid increased attention to educational and cultural work. Their interest was characteisticoffinegeneralupsnugeinlewishmlnuallifeinAmerica, which had been generated by the second and finird waves of immigration and whose impact would last finroughout the thirtie. During finis period, all areas of culture were energized: new literary fiends developed, new writers stepped onto fine scene, and new magazines appeared. English classes, local libraries, and concert halls wee all crowded with young immigrants whose desire for education and culture seemed insatiable. Alongside their own personal commitment to Yiddish culture was fine

%§Tyoung

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Y'Iddhh Prolotartan The!”

communist leades’ belief finat fine arts could serve as an important instrument in organizing workers politically and industrially Moreover, finey realized finat by responding to workers’ social and cultural needs, a comprehensive radial environment could be created finat, irn turn, would reduce their dependency on bourgeois institutions and reinforce fineir radical sentiments. Bertram D. Wolf, chairman of fine Agitation and Propaganda Department of fine New York Committee of fine Workers’ (Communist) Party, explained fine importance of party-affiliated recreational undertakings irn fine fields of sports, music, and drama. He noted that workers should play togefine just as tlney work and tight togefiner, and finat the content of their leisure activities should express fineir emotions and con-

censrafinefinanfineserntimentsoffinebourgeoisculhrrefinatweredirecfiy

or obliquely contradictory to proletarian beliefs. lrn a spirit typical of romantic radicalism, Wolf propheied finat fine approaching proletarian revolution would introduce to fine world an unprecedented resurgence of cultural achievement. In flower-y language, he decribed fine obligation of the moverrnernt to prepare for this new age: Our task is to awaken all humarnkind to culture; to prepare for fine artists and singers of the future fine largest, most profoundly cultured public fine world has ever krnown. Ibelieve fine Workers’ rrnoverrnernt will keep fine promise to humankind andwill realiaefinegoalofanepochofhumanculturefineworld has rneve dreamed of.l

Jewish communists were fully aware of fine fact that fine movement lacked a professional cadre finat could guide and run high-quality cultural endeavors and that cooperation with the Yrddishist intelligentsia was therefore imperative. The communists were confident finat they could achieve a urnited front with sympafinetic irntellectuals and artists who, frustrated witlnin fine mainstream Yiddishist establishment, were attracted to the youfinfulness and buoyancy of the radical camp. A lead article irn fine May 1926 issue of fine party publication, Dev Hammer, analyzed fine position of fine intellectual wifinin fine existing Yiddish culture and stated: fineJewish intellectual findsnogreat fortunewifin fineJewishbour'All in allHe is is trated and works in lifeles a geoisie. disgracefully, poorly paid, atrrnosphere. ln finis raped fine Jewish intellectual is worse off than fine intel-

n ligerntsia of file American bourgeoisie, whee finee is still hope for big money

'. and fame, even though only a minuscule group truly reache this pinnacle. With Yiddish speaking Jews such pirunacla do not exist.’

The article concluded that fine loyalty of some of fine Jewish intellectuals to fineJewishbourgeoisieisnotassfiongasitmayseenyandfinatfinisfrail loyalty will diminish in accordance wifin fine growing influence of fine workers’ movement.

Toward a Jewish Workers' Theatre

15

The young, relatively un-Arnericaniud post—World War Iimmigrants, who wee fine rank and file of fine radical camp, were passiornate in matters of cultural politics, particularly irn fine areas of literature and drama. Every attempt to improve fine Yiddish theatre irn fine name of ”high" art enjoyed fineir active support. In fact, a considerable number of these proletarian culture-devotées had become familiar in fineir East European hometowns with amateur dramatic circles finat hoped to improve fine folksy Yiddish fineatre primarily by presenting plays of literary merit. Thae dramatic circles, organized by a secular intelligentsia finat was breaking away from the confines of traditional Jewish life, began to proliferate toward fine end of fine nineteenth century, atablislning an important and irnfluenntial movement of high--minded amateur fineatrical groups. Out of finis traditicm emerged the senniprofessional troupe established by Wright Peretz Hirshbeinun 1905nn Odessa, one of fine major centers of fine Jewish Enlightenment. It was finis troupefinat has been credited'nn the annals of fine Jewish stage as the very first Yiddish art fineatre. Formed after of the 1905 Revolution, finis litfie theatre served, according to fine fine communist drama critic Nathaniel Buchwald, as an affirmation of faifin. According to Buchwald, its call for a better theatre reflected the need to revolutionize not only the Yiddish stage, but political and social life in general)

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reached level1.“ Russia The Moscow Art Theatre _was at its full glory and modernist experiments wee already evidentnn fine works of Vsevolod Meyerfiold_and Alexander Tairov. Hirshbeinand his colleagues were aware of current trendsnn fine Russian and, to a lesser extent, European fineatre. They wished to create a Yiddish fineatre of equal artistic sophistication, one that would transcend the simplistic and often crude ways of fine popular Jewish stage Thus, fine new theatre staged pla_ys by notable writers such as Yitzkhok leybush Peretz, Sholem Asch, David Pinski, Jacob Gordin, and r_lirshbeinhimsélf. Even finough this theatre was primarily literaryin its orientation, it paid considerable attention to fine art of fine actor, and for fine first time in the history of fine Yiddish fineatre, regarded stage directing as a distinct_ and conscious craft. Although fine Hirshbein Collective existed for only_ two years, it laid the foundation for a Yiddish art fineatre finat was in_sp:nred_l:_$y'_E_uropean theatrical culture, and its repertoire became the basis for fine two major Yiddish art fineatres that followed, the Hirshbeirn 'ltoupe, 125%thand fine Vilna TrOupe, which began producing in Februag1916. When culturally minded immigrants who were familiar with finis trend came to New Yoilt, they encountered a commercial Yiddish Rialto run by s_tar_-_-rna.nagers who specialized"m Operetta and sentimental melodrama. By fine nniddle of fine first decade of fine twentieth century, fine irnfluence of playwright Jacob Gordin, fine champion of serious Yiddish drama, was

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waning, and fine first so-called golden age of fine Yiddish stage irn America was reaclning its conclusion. The deafin of Abraham Goldfaden, fine founding fafiner of fine profssional Yiddish fineatre, on January 8, 1905, and of Gordin on June 13,1909, clearly symbolized fine end of an era. An interim_period followed, during which fine intelligentsia,rn conjurnc— tion withenfinusiastic members of fine working class, laid the Loundamfor the so-called second golden epoch of fine Yiddish fineatre. Through literary and dramatic clubs, finey paved fine way for fine professional Yiddish art fineatre finat would appear irn New York after World War I. Yiddish drama clubs had already been formed irn America in fine early 13805, but finey had few lofty artistic aspirations, fnrrnctioning mainly as showcase for would-be actors and playwrights. In fine absence of professional schools, they also served as rudimentary drama stnrdios where one Ieamed by trial and error. These clubs did not satisfy the expectations of fine intellectuals and politically oriented workem who were coming to America’s shores in growing numbers after fine turn of the century. Endowed with a growing fineatrical sophistication, they started fineir own clubs, wifin bettereducated actors and spectators. Their approach to theatre was still clearly literary, and their modernism lay primarilyin the presentation of playsby new Yiddish playnvrights like Hirshbeirn, as well as translations of major 'E__ur_op_ean_dramatists like Henrik Ibsen. Accordingly, finese clu_b; Ergmpteda_deeprespect for fine text, which was not to be found on Avenue, where plays were often brutally cut, changed, and plagnanzed' The clubs prepared fine ground for the post—World War Iart fineatres'in a number of ways. First, they provided a stage for young Yiddish dramatists who had little chance of having fineir plays produced elsewhere. Second, finey nursed raw young acting talent. Some of fine great Yiddish actors of fine second golden epoch started their profanonal livesnrn finese clubs. One of fine most famous was Maurice Schwartz, who his career irn a production called The fluentieth Century, or Devastation in Kishineo, produced irn 1905 by the Delancey Street Dramafic Club. The greatest actor of theYiddish art theatre, Jacob Ben-Ami also started his career in one ct_finése clubs in 1915.For newly arrived fineatre professionals suchas Lei-b Kadison, founder of fine Vilna Troupe, the clubs also functioned as ”welcome wagns.” Important not merely as laboratories for future profssionals, fine clubs also fulfilled fine task of educating a more discerning and demanding audience and irntroducing it to current Yrddish and European drama. The dramatic clubs movement blossomed all over the United States, and irn 1916 efforts were made in Cleveland and Detroit to establish a national umbrella organization. However, because war mobilization had begun in the United States, and official harassment of radicals had led to liquidation of organizations, confiscation of libraries, and ofiner drastic anti-left measures, these plans never came to fruition.

second

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Toward a Jewish Workers' 17min

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One of fine major clubsin finis amateur moverrnent was fine New Yorkbased Hebmhamalieleague,.atahlisbedin1907.16 preentations were so successful that ofiner literary-dramatic associations joined in, and by 1915, most of fine important clubs irn New York had meged into fine league. The Hebrew Dramatic League was soon invited to become fine drama section of the Workmen’s Circle. lrnitially, Elie-rewas heitation among league members, who feared censorship, loss of artistic independence, and absorption into a bigger organization. Still, a merge took placerrn January of 19_I_5_. The league beame Branch 555 of fine Workmen's Circle and changed its name to fine FwfidisheEolbbine [The Free Jewish People’5 Stage]. Its first production was lbsen’S An Enemy ofthc People. The Follcsbine was the first Yiddish art fineatre'rn America to become an affiliate of a major organization wifin a clear politial orientation, and finus to become formally integrated into leftist Yiddish institutional life. The interdependence of finis cultural network was manifested in fine aufinom’ evenings organized by the Department of Education of fine Workmen’s Circle, aimed at acquainting fine public wifin Yiddish aufinors and poets. These very popular evenings, which attracted standing-room audience, took place at fine auditorium of fine Rand School, fine educational arm of fine Socialist Party. Supported by generous ILGWU contributions, the school was hailed by fine Forward as fine socialistyeshiva. Urnionism, socialism, ]ewishnes, education, and culture were all integrated into a cohesive whole in finese Rand School events. Usually, fine Follcsbine participated, offering readings and short presentations of dramatized materials. lrn 1213 fig Follgbine pmducedflrin: felder [Green Fields], by Peretz Hirshbein, whose work it had previously pioneered. The production's popular success and critical acclaim went beyond anyone’s expectations. Years later, it was claimed finat finis offering marked ”finebirth of fine Yiddish art—fineatm.“ Its succes proved that finere was an audiencerrn New for ”better theatre,” and convinced Yiddish writers finat finere would York be room for finem on the Yiddish profesional stage. Green Fields was received so enfinusiastically finat, shortly after he had Place Theatre, the entrepreneurial Maurice Schwartz opened his

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Irving

Wednesday night premiere of Famorfir pink! [Forsaken Nook] made finealre history, and Wednesday, November 16, 1918, is considered fine official quthesecond goldenepoch of the Yiddish fineatreun America. All the preparatory work, fine commitment of amateurs, and fine aspirations of fine literati converged on finis one evening. Critics described the holiday spirit irn fine audience, fine feeling finat art had finally overfinrown shund. There was a sense finat fine Yiddish fineatre had been rediscovered — that it had finally come of age in America.

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Schwartz would be repaid for his connmitrrnent. Four years late, in 1922—23, when hehad a particularly bad season and was forced to close his fineater and go to work on fine English-language stage, he appealed to fine Jewish labor movernent for help. In response, irn August 1923, representative: of unions, fraternal organizations, and cultural groups, wifin a combined mernbeship of 200,000, cenvened and founded fine Folks Farband far Kurnst Teater (The People’s Association for Art Theatre). The official goal of fine organization was fine establishment of a Yiddish people’s fineatre; unofficially its immediate purpose was to support Schwartz’s fineatre. According to fine communist account, fine oversized board finat was elected by fine delegate irncluded many radicals, but a coalition of PoaleiZion, fine Zionist-socialist movement, and fine Forward socialists managed to maneuver fine commurniss out of fine executive committee. Following fine cornvention, fine Farband began to work energetically for the Schwartz Yiddish Art Theatre. A system of annual contributions by mernber organizations was set up: those with up to 500 merrnbes would pay finree dollars a year; finose wifin 500 to 1000 members five dollars annually; and those with more finan 1000 members ten dollars a year. Many workers’ organizations also bought benefit performance at fine Yiddish Art Theatre, thus supplying it wifin fine necesary cash to reume production. The Farband also issued individual membership cards at the cost of a dollar a year, which entitled fineir bearers to buy two discounted tickes at fine Yiddish Art Theatre. Many of finee cards were sold by fine enfinusiastic volunteers of fine newly formed Folks Theatre Club, a support group whose young members came mosfiy from radicalcircles. It was agreed finat irn return Schwartz would use finem as extras irn his productions and would

provide them with acting classe. The Yiddish Art Theatre was finriving again, but as time passed it became clear that fine Farband had reached a standstill. The maintenance of is office, along wifin fine salaries of the general secretary and fine office personnel, amounted to several finousand dollars a year, coss finat were not covered by the irncome derived from membership fee. The plan to raise large sums of money by issuing bonds for fine establishment of a Yiddish people's fineatre never materialized. lrn an effort to carry out its mandate to establish a people’s fineatre, the Farband spent much time and effort trying to urnite wifin the Yidisher Teater Geelshaft [Jewish Theatre Society], a small group that was preparing to open a new art fineatre.‘ But fine long and tedious planning sessions did not produce fine sought-after urnion, as fine Yidisher Teater Geselshaft refused to place iself under fine control of the larger organization. At fine same time, Maurice Schwartz, an astute politician, repeatedly declared his willingrness to place his fineatre under fine Farband’s control, though he showed no actual intention of relinquishing his position as the theatre’s owner and general director.

Tandem Wm‘Tho-ae

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EvenfinoughtheFarbarndfailedtofnfifillitsmissionofestablishinga people’s fineatre, it could claim two important achievenents: first, fine

formatiorn of fine active Folks Theatre Club, whose mernbes wee later instrumental irn fine etablishment of fine Artef organization, and secornd, a massive propaganda campaign for fine idea of an art fineatre finat would be controlled by fine masses. This campaigrn was conducted in two ways: finrough taller given by Farband repreentatives to groups finey wee trying to recruit as Farband member), and finrough Snmday morning lecture

offeedatfinehomeoffineYrddiahArtTlneafie.1heSundaylectureoen-

teed mosfiy on fine productim finat was currenfiy playirng at fine theatre, and on fine promotion of fine idea of a people’s fineatre. In 1937 Kalman Marmur, orne of fine major activists of fine Farband, who later became chairman of fine Artef organization, gave special credit to Maurice Schwartz, noting finat Schwartz regularly attended finele Sunday sessions,

listeningpafienfiytofineeificismofhisproducfiornsandeventofinetotal condemnation of fine notion of privately owned fineatres.’ On different occasions, usually at fine beginning or fine conclusion of the fineatre season, Schwartz would also help the Farband activists organize a special soiree. The modet admission fees were used to pay honoraria to fine lecturesfinatfine Farbandinvited duringfineyear. At first Schwartz had some of his major stars participate in thee soirees; later finee events became more literary and were conducted irn fine morning. One memorable program, which took place in December 1975, began wifin a presentation of fine main objective of fine Farband by Marmur. Jacob Metel as master of ceenonies finen introduced fine pe'formes: actor and director Abraham Taytel'boim, who offeed a rendition of works by Y. L Peetz; Murni Weisenfreurnd, better known in later years as Paul Murni, who recited works by poet Moshe Nadir; actor and director Mark Schweid, who read worls by Sholem Aleichern; and Moissaye Olgin, editor of fine Fren'ha't, who read a story by a young Soviet writer. Although fine Farband’s social and cultural events wee quite succesful, it failed irn its mission to ertablish a people’s fineatre, and consequenfiy was about to be liquidated by fine organization’s executive committee. However, its radical members strongly opposed fine decision and, wifin fine active support of fine Communist Party, managed to mobilize youfin clubs and other proletarian organizations to participate in an upcoming Farband confeence finat was to decide fine future of fine organization The 1925 confeence reflected fine mounting tensiorn between communists and socialists. As it opened, delegate of Poalei-Ziornand ofiner socialists demanded finat fine assembly officially honor fine memory of Samuel Gompers, fine recenfiy deceased preident of fine AFL (American Federation of Labor). The communists refused, contending finat Gompes had been a bitter foe of immigrants, a betrayer of fine working class, and an

20

WWW”

oppornent of any language or culture ofiner finan Englile After a long and heated debate, the left won and fine socialist leaders of fine Farband departed in protest. The association rerrnairned under fine full control of fine left

camp. OncefineFarband wninfinehandsoffineoommunists,whowereatfinat poirnt fine leading force in fine cloak, drasmakers’, and furriers’ uniorns, its objective had to be reassesed. No longer was it an umbrella organization representing fine entire gamut of Jewish labor. Now its radical activists wished to use it as a vehicle for fine formation of a Yiddish proletarian fineatre, one that would serve fine interets of the more sectarian Jewish left, a goal strongly promoted by fine Fm'her'l. With finis in mind, a meeting took place on October 7.5, 1915, attended by fine radicalmembers of the Farband, officials of fine Jewish bureau of fine Communist Party, and representative of social and cultural organizations finat operated wifinirn fine communist sphere, such as the Young Workers’ league, fine Freiheit Chorus, and fine Cooperative Workers’ Housing Society, as well as by sympafinetic fineatre people, artists, and musicians. Following finis meeting and numeous private consultations, fine activists of fine Farband decided depite doubts voiced by seve-al artists about fine nature of proletarian art irn general and proletarian fineatre irn particular —- to take on finemselve fine mission of building a Yiddish workers’ fineatre. In Novembe 195 fine Folks Farband far Kunst Teater appealed to all Jewish workers’ organizations to assist irn fine foundation of a proletarian fineatre to serve fine revolutionary Jewish left. The appeal stated finat fine Farband had been irn existence for almost finree years, that it had been irnvolved mosfiy irn supporting private fineatres in which good plays were produced on a high artistic level, and finat fine time had come to form a genuirne workers’ theatre. In conjunction wifin this appeal, the Freihzr't published several article discussing fine notion of a workee’ theatre. A month later, fine special opening session of a confeence devoted to fine esmblishment of a Yiddish workes’ fineatre took place at fine Central Opera House in New York, attended by two finousand people. The conference prope was attended by finree hundred delegate repreenting various radical groups with a combined menbership of one hundred finousand. One hundred sixty-eight delegate represented eighty-four leftist branche of fine Workmen's Circle, forty-two represented twenty-one labor urnions, and fine ret repreented fine Natsionaler Arbeter Farband [National Workers’ Association], fine Independent Workmen’s Circle, and an array of cultural organizations. In addition to speeches by representatives of the Freiher'l and fine Commurnist Party, talks were preented by party people El Harris and Noah London, by poet Moshe Nadir, by Azriel Nachs of fine radical students’ organization, and by playwright DavidPinski. of Detailed proposals wee delivered by Nathaniel Buchwald, drama

—

eitic

TowdaJowish Workora'meam

21

fine Freflreit, and by Jacob Metaland Abraham Taytelboim, bofin of whom

were directors and actors. The conference changed fine name of fine organization to Arbeter Teater Farband [Workes’ Theatrical Alliance], which came to be known by is acronym, Artef. lt chose a board of finirty-five finat later grew to fifty membes, whicln irncluded party people, mernbers of fine Frerher't, activists of fine Farband, and such notable writes and artists as Boris Aronson, Morris Wrrnclnevsky, H. Leiviclc, Jacob Mestel, Yossl Kutler, and Abraham Raizin. Not all finese artists were radicals, but finey all wished to participate in fine effort to build a serious Yiddish fineatre. The officers of fine new organization were all drawn from fine communist camp. Slnorfiy finereafter, fine Arbeter Teater Farband was incorporated so finat it could sell $501!!) worfin of bonds. It etablished its office in fine immediate vicinity of fine Fmilm't, at 41 Union Square, in an area finat was fine hub of Jewish radical life. Later it was decided finat the organization's ongoirng expenses would not becoveed by fine bonds,but rafiner by yearly fees paid by member organizations, according to fine following scale: up to 150 membes, five dollars a year; 150 to 500 members, ten dollars a year; more than 500 membes, fifteen dollars a year; and over 5000 members, twentyfive dollars a year. On May 8, 1926, fine Arbeter Teater Farband arranged a banquet at fine Actors’ Club where the campaigrn to sell fine five-dollar bonds, payable in small installments, began. Representative of unions, Worlcmen’s Circle branche, and various small cultural groups, as well as individuals, committed finemselves to buy more finan finree thousand bonds.’ Still, not mudn got done in terms of actually building a workers’ fineatre, due largely to fine bitter internal struggles in which the movement was finen embroiled in fine garment unions. The creation of a fineatre company was not at fine top of fine radical agenda at finat time. However, even during finis period of relative inactivity, fine organization conducted several major events that helpedpopularize fine notion of proletarian theatre. Among fine most important was fine symposium irn December 1926 at fine Central Opera House. The participans were a typical mixture of party intellectuals such as Moissaye Olgin, David Abrams, Melech and Schachno Epstein, and Kalman Marmur, and sympafinetic fineatre people, irncluding actors Jacob Ben-Ami and Abraham Taytelboirrn, playwrighs H. Leivick, David Pinski, and Leon Kobrin, and critics Dr. Alexander Mukdoni and Shnnuel Niger. Niger was fine only one to come out against fine idea of a ”theatre for workers by workers” because he felt it would isolate fine Jewish working class from fine rest of fine Jewish people and because he was convinced finat such a fineatre could not survive financially.’ If fine time were not conducive to major cultural undertakings, finey were certainly ripe for spreading new ideas fiuough fine theatre. Life had become irncreasingly politicized, and fine relationship between art and life

&

YHdthIoIatananThaatra

began to be examined irn greater depth. Nafinaniel Buchwald erplained fine radials’growingsenseoffineincongruity finatexistedbetweenlifeand fine stage: Life pulled irn one direction. to world uphavals, to revolution, to Soviet Russia, to collective oonsciousrnes and allective actiorn [while] fine fineatre still busied itself with bygone idylls, Hassidic legends, all kinds of tall tale, or wifin fine routirne of bourgeois life, family drama and romantic complia-

tiona."

p The increased dissatisfaction wifin fine Yiddish art fineatres was in part

due to their choice of repetoire, which was seen by fine left as a passive bourgeois demonstration against fine growing radicalization of fine Jewish working class. Criticism was also directed‘lat 'fineir style, which was ease; ”gill realistic. 5y fiiis"peri'od fi seemed to many finat new and relevant fineatre haddisassociated itself from realism.The radialJewish intéllectu—al Ed‘culturalelite watched fine new WFISEUEWOPGBD theatre, and particularly irn the 13955an’fheatrejwifh interet and admiration. Even finose who were not supporters of the new Soviet regime were taken wifin the vitality and creativity of fine Russian cultural scene. The abundance of firsfinand information about the bold fineatrical experimentation that was taking place in fine Soviet Union turned fine Soviet theatre irn general, and fine sha ly stylized and high-aliber productions of Goset, fine Moscongrd— an particnrlar into models'of what socially and artistically signifiant fineatre ought to be. As a result of finis great interest in and emotional identification wifin fine Revolution-inspired avant garde, fine fineatrial conceps of fine Jewish intelligensia beame more clearly defined and new criteria for fine fineatre began to be developed. The elements of directing and stage deign drew irncreased attention, and theatre was no longer viewed as literature wifin live illustrations, but rather as an art form with is own unique language and norms. Moissaye Olgin described finis vision of fine modern fineatre:

3215 Emma,

‘

‘. Symbols have to appear on stage as such. They require a different kind of technique. They denarnd sharp edges, bright contrasts, a reduction of detail, a generalization, a aclnerrnatiration, a rapid tenpo. This doe not exclude typial characters or irndividual traits. Quite fine contrary, in such a performance fine typial an be emphasized and exaggerated much rrnore finan in fine

realistic fineatre.“

lrornically, fine only Jewish company ouside fine Soviet Union that embodied finis new sort of fineatre art was fine Hebrew-language Habima. This was hard for fine communists to accept since fine troupe was part and parcel of mode-n Zionism, which Jewish communists had deplored as bourgeois-

TWIWWM'M

z?

nationalistic and thus a socially reactionary movement. Still, when the Habima more to fine United State on tour inn 1926727, presenting its celebrated production of The Dybbuk, devout communists such as Olgin felt compEIIEdto praise it as an exemplary model of what fine new theatre was all about. While denouncing Habima’s politial affiliation, its usage of Hebrew as fine language of production, and its choice of repertoire, he nevetheles urged fine young fineatre artists who identified wifin fineJewish left to adopt its style as a model and a source of inspiration. Olgin wrote: The Habima artists say often finat they do not wish to reproduce. This [wish] which are fine philistirne and drive fine academicians to madm, is fine daily bread of fineir theatre. Not fine appearance ”as at Yosl and Moyshe’s,” but finoughtfully creau've mash Not talking as if "around dad's table,” but rather mode-n vocal textures and sound constructions, at times in chorus, at

ofinerfinnesaiss—eoasingorflaslningalwayshamnoniousinfinesenseof mode-n music.11

. _v

The characters finat appeared on stage, explained Olgin, were not ”regular people," but ”noticeable figure," who made use of ”an unending wealfin of geticulation, of a whole world of dance movement artistically planned and always unpredictable.” What one saw was ”not a ’stage’ — a place where people walk about and talk, but an artistic whole, an organized artistic totality,” whose effects were ”trernendous."“ Little did Olgin know at finat time finat it would be Benno Schneider, one of finese Habirrna actors, who would later shape the artistic style of the yet unborn Artef fineatre as an extension of fine fineatrical tradition established during the cold Moscow winter of 1918. The influence of fine so-called Theatriml October in Soviet Russiaand fine growfin of a serious, radially inclined audience had fineir effect on fine New York Yiddish art finentre. The 1926-27 theatrical season shows the enormous impact of finee twoinfluenca on the local Yiddish Riallb. The functioning art fineatres in New York in finat year were the_Yiddish Art Theatre, owned, managed, and directed by its star Maurice Schwartz; the Ifii—ng Egce Th_e§_t;re, directed by Jacob Ben-Ami; and fine Vilna Troupe, a recent arrival from Poland, where it had been considered fine major propo— nent of serious Yiddish drama. The impact of fine rise of a demanding, radically inclined audience was clmly reflected irn plays produced that season. One major category irncluded plays wifin a strong social content finat dealt wifin collectivity, such as The Machine Stormers by Ernst Toller, Danton by Romain Rolland, Hands by Hirshbein, and The Golan and Shop, bofin by Leivick. The ofiner important category was finat of Russian innports. Schwartz, for example, produced The Tenth Commandment, an adaptation of Goldfaden’s play to

24

Yiddbh Protatanan finest-a

Takhmod [Thou Shalt Not Covet]. As in fine very succssful original production of finis play finat had opened ten monfins earlie at Goset, fine Moscow Yiddish State Theatre, fine text had been radially cut and reassembled according to modemistic directorial requirements.“ The Irving PlaceTheatre prepared an elaborate production of Nikolai Evreinov’s Boat of Saints, and fine Vilna Troupe chose Alexei Tolstoy’s boulevard play The Conjurah'on of the Empress, renamed, for commercial reasons, Rasputin and the Czar-inn. According to Nafinarniel Buchwald, fine director of fine Vilna Troupe made no secret offine fact that he chose fine play because it hadcreated quite a stir

irn Russia.“ Not only fine plays,but many of the professionals involved in fine staging, were Russian. A whole camp of Russian specialists was engaged in order to guarantee an aufinentic moderrnistic style. Among finem were Boris Aronson, fine young, recenfiy arrived constructivist designer, who was fine key artist behind The Tenth Commandment; fine composer Joseph Aklnron, who had written fine music for the Moscow Yiddish State Theatre’s production of The Witch; and M. Mordkhin, fine well-known Russian ballet-master, who was invited to teach plastic movement to the actors who participated irn The Tenth Commandment. Moreover, the old rule finat fine director-manager of fine theatre was the exclusive regisseur was now beirng readily broken: the Yiddish Art Theatre advertised at the very beginning of the season finat the famed Russian director Richard Bolelavsky would mount a production of Othello; fine Vilna Troupe engaged the Russian director E. Munka to prepare its first production of fine season; and fine Irving Place Theatre had none ofiner finan Nikolai Evreinov as a collaborator on fine direction of his play Boat of Saints. In two article written for the Yiddish communist rnonfinly Der Hammer, Nafinaniel Buchwald, chief propagandist for a workers’ art theatre, discussed fine current state of the New York Ynddish art fineatres and offered his interpretation of fine new fiends involving a social repertoire and Russianinspired fineatricalism.“ Buchwald claimed finat fine new orientation of fine art theatres was a roofless phenomenon: it did not grow out of an orgarnic drive but was instead a commercial effort to attract fine "masses finat filled Madison Square Garden,” namely young radical workers In his view ‘cggnmerce was the most important force behind fine new direction finat the fineatres had takern. Had there been enough customers for their old offerirngs, the theatres would not have stopped dealing wifin ”dybbulg,_ domesThe new art, Buchwald predicted, would last . tic dramas and shtetl idylls. only as long as finere was sufficient demand for it. Once it was no longer to art theatres customary fineir the would back stock profitable, go According to Buchwald, finat old stock, namely literary melodrama, was what fine theatres were basically most comfortable wifin. Maufice‘sch—Wart: '- _had _to bend over backwardin order to become a modemistic director and actor. By nature, Schwartz would have liked to cater to fine mood and

"

""

TowardIJewish Workers' Than

25

ideology of fine Jewish bourgeoisie, andornl economic necessity caused

Buchwald'El'a‘Eietl

t Murals that Schwartz had admitted hedid notfitthenew art, andengaged irnitonly irnordernot to lagbehirnd. Buclnwald was kinder to Ben-Ami, whom he considered more sophisticated and to some degree freer of the base mercantile cornside-ations which he believed motivated fine entrepreneurial Schwartz. Ben-Amidid not own fine lrvirng Plaoe Theatre, he had been involved in some modern fineatre on Broadway, and he was less enslaved by fine old routines. To Buchwald, he was a theatre liberal who believed one had to raped fine new form. But Bern-Anni, heconntended, alsowislnedtobelikedbyfinelewishbourgeoisie and by nature Eavitateclto fine drama of fine individual, to heightened \ literaturewifin strong heoa full of intellectualdoubts. Ben-Anni, Buchwald concluded, also engagedin fine new form because of fine demand of fine As for the Vilna Troupe, its choice of Russian materialreulted from eer o'pportunism, as fine troupe had ”naturalism written on their banner” and was completely alien to the new Russian trends." By rrnidseason it became clear finat fine new modemistic line of the art fineatrs w_as aboLofiimfailurB As Buch'w'ald'liaa‘predicted the Yiddish Art Theatre and fine Irving Place Theatre quickly reoriented themselves to fine safe genre of literary melodrama donern fine familiar realistic style. According to Buchwald, finis lack of succss was fine result not only of fine roofiessrnas of the whole phenomenon, but also of the absence of outside cultural support. The productions wee offered to fine public like merchan_dise to customers,withouTa'r'n'y cultural preparation and mediation Consequenfiy, the new theatrical mode stimulated little interet, and fine public behaved like disinterested customers, feeling no obligation to support finese erperinnents. Efact,_iti_s_h_ard _to_est:imate fine extent to which the new trend had failed, although no one could argue wifin fine fact that box-office proceeds were less finan finose of popular hits. Buchwald made the point that rarely could a genuine art fineatre cover its expenses, specially when finose were staggeringly high. He wrote, ”It is not a given in fine art world finat an art fineatre has to be located on the main street or finat a director cannot sacrifice himself for less than $500 a week, or finat actors can serve art only if finey are paid as much as in the shund theatres.” Had finese fineatre practitioners been truly dedicated to art, he said, finey would be willing to sacrifice a bit, to play in smaller house, to give up loud and expensive advertising, and to forego profits in order to fulfill fineir creative needs. ”Our poets do not live in palaces,” Buchwald added, and ”our novelists do not drive around irn fineir own cars, our artists have no bank books."1 He concluded irn a mocking tone, saying finat fineatre people wanted, irn fine best case, to combine ”goodies" wifin art, and that at the end finey were willing to sacrifice art for fine attainment of luxuris.

a_bl‘nq'

Yiddish thmrlan Thanh.

26

Yiddish actors, like fine director—manages, were also seen as children of the existing order To Buchwald finey were pitiful creatures of habit and old routines. Hebelieved thatinallfiueeartfineatren finerewerepe'hapshalfa dozen actors who had any notion of what fine new fineatre was all about, andnomorefinantwoorfiueewhohadagenuirne tasteforit.‘I'hoseactors who were not corrupted by fine cynicism of their profession, he noted, wished to play ”literature” rafine finan shund and knew no other division. Budnwald explained that the veteran actors got fineir' training at fine old schools of Jacob Adler, David Kessler, and fine other great stars of finat finose who had some education beyond fineir”profesgeneration, and

that

actors belonged in finis sense to fine old guard an t tmost naturaland comfortablein fine realistic theatre. Moreover, Buchwald noted, in fine bourgeois theatres actors wee no more finan hired help working for wages and a season’s engagement. Their positions were not secure from one year to fine next, their enthusiasm limited mosfiy to satisfying fine taste of fine owner and to wirnrning over fine audience. Under such circumstance finee could be no talk of a collective,

‘- §tanislavs E.ven fine younger

ofapermarnentfamilyofartistswhocreatedandgrewtogefinenlnfine existing Ynddish theatre, finee was no collective responsibility, no common goal, he wrote. Everyone was out for himself, for his own publicity, for his own intersts.

Buchwald sarcastically summed upthe shallownature of fine ”Russian” voguemfineYiddrsharttheatrB '

'

"

Managers who have to deal with fine latet fashions, directors who need to bend over backward irn order not to remain outside fine market, and poor actors who must do whatever fine owne tells them even finough finey have no id. how to do it and for what purpose. Add to finis stage daigrnes who are ’WmernbesIn good standing” in fine designers' urnion and you have a bright ensemble of fine new fineatre, a la Moscow, 3 la Tairov, A la

L Granovsky."

The only way to resolve finis mockery, Buchwald wrote, was to give up on fine private art theatres, which were no more finan shops managed for profit, and to build a workes’ art fineatre finat would be supported by workers who would regard it as fineir own. That responsibility,he said, rats on fine shoulders of fine Arbeter Teater Farband.

NOTES 1. Bertram Wolf, "Vos iz arbeter bildung?" [”What Is Workers' Education?"], Der Hammer (New York), April 1926, p. 56.

rs

Toward n W Workers' Than

27

'Unzee knrltur-oyfgabn” [”Our Cultural Tub'], Der Hartline (New York), May 1926, p. 19.

. Nafinaniel Buchwald, 1h!” [Tlutre] (New York: Fariag Committee, 1943), p. 386.

. lamb Fiahmarn,a. Levin,and B.Stabinowitz, eds, Firy‘nrndtsunlsr'g yorfnflsbr'nz

[Minty-Five Yarn d the Polishing] (New Yorlc Drunafiahe lrnstitutsye fun Arbeter Ring, Branch 555, 1940), pp. 97—100.

. David S. Libra-n, Yiddish Them in America (New York: Thomas Yoseloff, 1965), pp. 225-24.

. Thy-unpopenedonDecerber9J92tinfineBmArtnnafiewheeit

qae'atedforoneyurJacdn Metel,oneofitsoentnl figura,latebeumefine hadoffineArtefstudio. .KalmanMannur,”DifargehikhtefnmArtef"[”11neEarlyl~iistoryoffine Artef'], in Bar Yor Artefle Yams dArtej] (New York.- Artef, 1937), p. 10. .ltianotqnutedearwhefinerfineepledgaweeundeedhanoredeidnotfmd anirndicationnofsuchanamournt.Infactduringfinenextseveralyersfine ArbeteTmter Farband suffeed fromaoonstantshortageoffunds . Marmur, ”Di far gel-nikhte,” p. 14. 10. Buchwald, We, p. 416. 11. Moisaye Olgin, ”In teater" [“ln the Theatre"], Der Hammer (New York), )anuary 1927, p. 59. 12. Ibid. 13. Ibid. 14. The Moscow production opened on January 16, 1926. Schwartz’s production opened on Nave-rise 18, 1926, at fine Yiddish Art Theatre. Schwartz used his own adaptation of fine Abraham Goldfaden original; howeve, since it was heavily influenced by fine original Russian production,Ihave chosen to put it in fine ”import” ategory. 15. Nafinarniel Buchwald, ”Di naye 'orientatsye’ fun unzere hunt-fates" ["The New Orjeritation of Our Art Theatre”], Der Hammer (New York), October 1926, p. 55. ns._ lbid.aider1n, ”1n tester” [”ln the Theatre”), Der Hammer (New York), May 1927. 17. Buchwald, ”in taste," p.55. '

18. Buchwald, "Naye ’orientatsye,”’ p. 59. 19. lbid., p. 57. 20. Buchwald, "ln teater," p. 57. 2) lbid.

.{ZJBuchwald ”Naye 'orientatsye,"' p. 59.

Chapter 111

THE STUDIO n fine wirnter of 1924 a group of young workers affiliated wifin Brooklyn Chapter TWO of fine Young Workers’ leaguegathered in a small hall on Street in lower Manhattan and decided to Torin a'n'amateur F0

theatri— tioupe. Their hope was finat it would become the drama section of fine radical Jewish labor movement, and accordingly, they named finenselves fine Freiheit Dramatishe Sektsye [Freilneit Drama Sectionl.‘

Wifinin a matte of days they organized and secured a professional director, Abraham Provotiner, and chose several one-act plays on which to work: Chaim Meizel’s Di 7 payatsn [The Seven Clowns], Moshe Nadir’s Di mayse mit’n herring [The Story of the King], and fine group’s own dramatization of several poems by Moshe leib Halpern.‘ They approached fine work wifin fine traditional zet of amateur groups, moving directly into fine rehearsal and production stage, fine members finemselves buildirng the sets and sewing fineir own costume. Only two months late, fine actors felt ready to show their work. On Saturday night, April 18, they presented a one-night performance to an audience of 150 irn a hall in fine Brownsville section of Brooklyn. The evening opened wifin fine singing of fine ”Internationale” and concluded with dandng to fine tune of comrade Feldman’s jazz band. Interjected between fine fineatrial presentations was a speech by comrade Millgram, who repreented fine Jewish propaganda committee of the district. The evening was well received by fine audience and was considered a succss, specially sirnce ticket sales had covered all production expenses. Encouraged and more confident, fine company members began to look for fineir next challenge. Abraham Provotiner prsented finem with his own adaptation of Sholem Aleidnem’s Kappars [Expiatory Sacrifice], an ambitious musical play finat called for seventy participants and a commissioned

mummy-man Uta-tre

37

score. Confidenfiy, fine group accepted fine proposal and put an advertisementirnfinel-‘reiheitinordetorecruitfinenecesarycast. Italsocorntacted Lazar Weinstein, finen fine conductor of fine Freiheit Chorus, irnviting him to work with finem on fine musical parts, and commissioned fine composer Zaslavsky to write fine music for fine show. The endeavor did not proceed well. By fine second week of rehearsals, people began to quit. Even after being replaced by new actors, fine work seened togonowlnere, and abouttwoweeksafterrehearsalshadbegunfine project was abandoned and fine cast scattered. However, a core of seven faifinful refused to disband, and began to debate irn earrnet what course of action to choose. Finally, influenced by discussion in fine Fm'heit about fine need for a well-trained drama section and by various ongoing debate about Yiddish fineatre and modern theatre art, finey decided to forego immediate production and to engage in serious fineatrical studie. The rault was fine formation of the Freiheit Dramatishe Studye [Freiheit Drama Studio] fine nucleus of fine future Artef. Who were finese seven founders? Hannah Shpiner, Feigl barman, George Rutnnan, Shayke Shtrauss, Aaron Holts, Abraham Hirshbein, and Moyshe Friedman wee typical of post-war radical immigrant youfin. Wifin fine exception of Moyshe Friedman, who was a few years older, finey wee all born in 1905 or 1906. Most had come to fine United State around 1922, and all had been greatly influenced by fine Bolshevik Revolution. They were mosfiy shopworkes ennployed irn fine garment industry and some of fine men also worked as house painters. All wee members of industrialurnions affiliated wifin fine Communist Party, and some of finem were card-holding party members., A clear sense of fineir political sentiments at fine time can bederived from fine bios they prepared for fine Then yor Artef anniversary book. Moyshe Friedman’s account is more vivid than ofiners. Discussing himself in fine finird person, he wrote:

—

[Friedman] arrived in Arne-ica at fine end of 1922 and went to work irn a rrnillinery shop. ... There a worker suggeted to him finat he rad daily a ’strange’ newspaper, fine Fm'heit. He found it both sweet and painful. Sweet, because it spoke so well of his Russia. Painful, beause it exposed fine wound Palestine. Sirnce finen, he has rneve separated from fine pape. He asodatedhirnselfwithfineleftistsinfineshopandinfineurnion.Hesanginfine Freilneit Chorus and joined fine Communist Party.‘

—

The seven founders, like many other radically oriented cultural groups, established contact wifin fine Freiheit.Their very first official meeting as fine Freilneit Studio took place in one of fine newspaper’s Urnion Square offices. Shortly thereafter finey published an advertisement in fine paper, inviting people from eighteen to finirty years of age who wished to study acting to register for fine studio.’ Thirty people reponded. The next step was finding

mm

31

appropriate acting teachers. They selected actor-directors Jacob Mesteland Abraham Taytelboim. On December 15, 1925, fine formal auditiorn for fine would-be actors was held.Abraham Hirshbeindecribed fine occasion: At fine Frrilner't building, Sunday manning; comrade Mate] and Taytelboirn presiding. We, in a holiday spirit, seated, rady for fine examination. Tiny all out name: ”What do you know about finafie? Have you acted before? Can you show sonrnefining?” Nearly all fine appliants pamed the tat, and fine teaches had a serious discussion with fine strident: in which they outlirned fineaubjedsofimfinrctian.nneyalsoissueda warning: ”Children you have to understand one fining darly. You have to forget for fine time being about acting in a production. It takes years to study.“

The nineteen people accepted (7 women, 12 men) were joined during fine first studio season by a additional group of seven (4 women, 3 men) and irn 1927—23 by five more students (2 women, 3 men).’ Shortly after fine studio’s forrrnatiorn, Jacob Mestelassumed fine pedagogical directorship. He became fine group’s dnief acting and speech instructor and was instrumental irn shaping fine studio’s curriculum.‘ Unlike many of his colleague in fine Yiddish fineatre, Mestel’s personal and professional standards were shaped wifinin the framework of German culture. Bonn irn 1884 iii Calida, finen part of fine Austro-Hungarian Empire, he received a traditional Jewish education followed by classical German studies. Mestel studied philosophy at fine University of Vienna, and iii 1908 graduated as an officer from a military academy irn fine Austrian capital. Under fine influence of fine growing interat irn Yiddish culture, which gained momentum after fine 1908 Czemowia Confeence, Mestel joined a Yiddish-language theatre irn Vienna.’ Metel fought in World War I, and was decorated forhismilitaryse'vice. Aftehisreleasefromfinearmyheentered fine Vienna State Acaderrny for Directing and Acting. Mate] helped found fine Vienna Fray: Yidishc Falksbine, a Yiddish fineatre, and established the first Yiddish drama school irn fine Austrian capital. It was during this period finat hebecame a great admirer of fine work of Max Reinhardt, whom heconsidered fine greatest fineatrical figure of fine day." Parallel to his fineatrical career, Mestel also developed a reputation as a man of letters, and published several volumes of Yiddish poetry. His book MflHrame notitsnfun a yr'dn'slm afitsir [Memoirs of a Jewish Qfi‘iotr], published in 1924, was translated irnto German and Hungarian. During his long fineatriml career Mate] wrote extensively on the fineatre and would later become co-editor of fine idrsikan fun yidr'shn tater [lexicon of the Yiddish 11min], fine most important reference work on fine Yrddish fineatre. In 1920 Mate! came to America, spending his first years wifin fine Arch Street Theatre in Philadelphia. In 1923 he entered fine Yiddish Art Theatre irn New York, and irn 1926 he joirned forces wifin Jacob Ben-Ami and toured fine

32

Yiddish Pmletalian Dune

United Stats and Canada wifin him. His work with Ben-Ami was fine beginning of a long-lasting association finat spanned more finan two decades. Upon joining fine Freiheit Studio, he took a temporary leave of fine profesional fineatre that lasted until fine official opening of fine Artef Theatre irn December 1928." Mastel brought to fine studio a comrrnitment to fineatre as high culture, a deep conviction finat fine purpose of fine stage was to create a work of art finat would elevate fine public rather than succumb to popular taste.“ He was convirnced that in order to attain finis goal, the artist needed to adhere, first and foremost, to fine principles of discipline, precision, and metierlous preparation. Clearly, irn Mestel’s Weltmschnuung, discipline and culture were irnterdependent and mutually irnclusive. The haphazard manner irn which many popular Yiddish productions were staged and fine all but minimal respect finey paid to fine dramatist’s work were a source of much consternation to him. He hoped finat a cadre of cultured, educated, professional actors, who felt fine need to participate in meritorious productions, would strongly impact on fine overall artistic quality of the Yiddish stage. This idealism imparted to his students a sea of identity and cultural mission: fine actor was no mere jester who entertairned fine crowd, but a respectable and valuable co-builder of a national culture. Mestel was diametrically opposed to fine popular realistic style of fine Yiddish stage. To those who invoked Stanislavsky’s name as proof of fine artistic legitimacy of fine genre, he answered finat fine great Russiandirector was in fact fine ”most talented impresionist” of fine period, explaining finat only what has been ”distilled irn fine artist’s soul, can become true art.”“ If one wanted to show ”real life,” he argued, finen fine spectator ought to be taken to fine street or to a family home where he could witness ”true” reality. The fineatre, he maintained, could show only artistic trutln. Mestel was keen on quoting Friedrich Schiller: ”The actor has to create his tnrfin not out of nature but out of art, and his beauty not out of art, but out of mm_"ll

lrn fine 19205 Mestel was greatly interested irn mass theatre, in fine representation of the collective. He wrote finat mass theatre was part of a histrionic tradition finat dated back to fine war dance of early man, and finat developed finrough fine medieval passion plays, to be manifated irn modem time; in the dramatized mass spectacles produced irn the Soviet Union. This fineatrical form, Mastel explained, had been maintained finroughout the ages because of people’s innate rneed to act, and fineir desire to participate irn fineatrical ceremonies expressing communal sentiments. He claimed that at fine praent moment in Jewish life when fine rapid pace of evens meant that one could not see fine forest for fine tres there was a need for mass spectacles whose concentrated artistic expresion and aufinentic exuberance would bring forth fine highlights in fine life of fine people.

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TheStuio

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Mass spectacle, as well as ensernble productions produced by a collective of players who had a common social and artistic vision, called for fine abolition of fine star system, for positioning fine group at cente stage. The virtuosity of fine individual performer, Metel argued, was no longer fine ultimate goal; artistic etpresion had to take place wifinin certain limits imposed bofin by fine ensemble and fine nature of fine entire production. This explains the reduced emphasis that Mate! placed on individual talent. Mate] noted that clearly natural talent, combined wifin a good physique and a pleasant voice, were deirable, but emphasiud finat acting was not a divinely inspired skill. lrn fact, when it came to a choice between talent and discipline, Mestel admitted that he preferred fine latte. According to Mate], fine two major challenges in training Yiddish actors lay in fine areas of speedn and expressive movement. In movement, the main goal was to revive and stylize fine Jewish gesture, an area in which important milestone had been set by fine Habima production of The Dybbuk (1919) and fine productions of 200,000 (1973) and Baymkht ang‘n alt-nnnark [Night at the Old Market] (197.5) at fine Moscow Yiddish State Theatre. Mestel regarded fine perfection of his actors’ physical expresion as an attainable goal. The Jewish actor, he contended, had a natural gift for mimicry and gesticulatiorn, a talent that was evident on fine popular Yiddish stage, quite often at fine expense of fine spoken word. This ”natural” inclination, according to Metel,explained why the Yiddish fineatre had produced so many fine character actors. Metel, who admired German actors for fineir elocution and diction, which set fine starndard for fine entire population, considered fine art of speech as fine weaket spot of Yiddish actors. According to him, fine reason was finat fine Yrddish fineatre was a folk theatre finat grew out of the wirne taverns of Rumania, and used a language that for a long time had been frowned on as low-class jargon. It had no standardized pronunciation and no central aufinority to decide on such matters. That, for fine acadennically inclirned Mestel, was a regrettable and unacceptable situation. He was disturbed, for example, finat when actors from fine Vilna Troupe gave guest appearances at fine Yiddish Art Theatre, finey spoke in their native Lifinuarnian accent. The discrepancy irn pronunciation between finem and fine rest of fine company created, according to Mate], a feeling of ”distrust and lawlessness” finat undermined fine entire production.“ In his work wifin the studio, Mestel would devote much time and effort to the achievement of a standardized stage prornurnciation. The Yiddish actor, wrote Mestel, had sinned not only against his language but also agairnst tone and diction. This was parfiy due to fine fact finat he often played under difficult physical conditions, at times to audiences finat only halfway understood his tongue. Whatever the reasons, the fact remained, Mestel contended, finat fine art of declamation was still in a

34

YiddIshProbtahnnncatm

primitive stage in fine Yiddish fineatre. It did not extend far beyond fine conventions of a simple person speaking in a rough tone of voice and an educated dnaracter using a genfier tonality. That, commented Mestel, was where fine Yiddish finealrianl ”symphony of voice" ended.“ The idea of a harmonious voml ensemble, so effectively used by Reinhardt, was alien to fine Yiddish fineatre. Mestel corncluded finat fine task of fine teacher irn finis area was formidable, as he had ”to teadn fine Yiddish actor individual speech melody and collective language instrnmnentation; how to forge out of fine old pafinos and fine modem tempo a rhythm suited to our time.” The Freiheit Dramatic Studio had its home on East llfin Street irn Manhattan. Students attended class sessions four to five times a week. They studied four to five hours each evenirng and all day Sunday during fine fineatre season. Mestel, as principal teadner of fine studio, devoted much time to declamafion and diction. in designing his courses he encountered some difficulties, in particular fine absence of practical teaching materials. Using fine Roman alphabet in order to increase precision, Mestel forged fine various accents and dialects of his students irnto a uniform stage language. Much attention was also given to movement. Conscious of fine requirements of fine modern stage for a flexible body and even acrobatic skills, fine studio engaged two top dance teachers: Michel Fokine, and Sophie Berenson, affiliates of the Neighborhood Playhouse.“ Ofiner practical courses centered around individual and character declamation, usirng fine fundamentals of plastic movements to which fine students had been exposed. Abraham Taytelboim trained finem in etudes and scene work, Sergei Radomsky, a famous tenor, taught voice, former Habinrna member Benno Schneider taught stage makeup, and artist Moi Solotaroff taught stage daign and costume. The academic courses included Theory of Directing, taught by Nafinaniel Budnwald; Dramaturgy, taught by Mendl Elkin; History of Theatre, taught by Jacob Shatsky; and Dramatic Literature, taught by Kalman Marmur. Students also had to take courses in Yiddish, which wee intended to improve fineir language skills and to familiarize finem wifin Yiddish literature. The Yiddish course wee taught by R Tchssirn and late by Slnayke Shtrauss, one of fine studio members. (The cuniculum of fine Freilneit Studio, as listed in Ben yor Artef appears on fine following page.) The stnrdio years were remembered by the students as a period of sacrifice. Employed all day irn fine shop, finey were often physially and emotionally drained in fine evening. Mestel described fine toll it took on their work: Not always did fine body, exhausted by fine day‘s work, lend itself to be bent and drilled according to fine nrle of fine plastic movement of fine rrnoden stage. The nerves, tense from the shop, could not always serve well for fine intensive acting theory and practice work."

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Them

35

Moreove, the expense involved irn running fine studio had to be fully coveed by the students. They paid a twenty-five-dollar entrance fee, as well as a weekly fee of $2.50 whicln later went up to five dollars, hefty sums for fine young blue-collar immigrants who often found themselves out of work. What sustained finem, irn addition to Mestel’s Pnrssian discipline, was fine shining ideal of becoming a permanent, profesional theatre com-

Pa-“Ylrn 1926, about six monfins after fine studio had been organized, it placed itself voluntarily unde fine supervision of fine Arbeter Teater Farband, and

an advisory board was formed to guide the fledgling group. The board consisted of Mate], Nafinaniel Buchwald, drama critic of fine Freiher't, and Schachrno Epstein and Kalman Marmur, also of fine Freiher't. They were later

jobnedbyRobetYukelsomapartyfnuncfionaryzandbynotedpoetMoshe Nadir. Three students, Moyshe Friedman, George Rutman, and Shayke Shtrauss, wee also members of fine board. The affiliation with fine Farband gave fine studio legitimacy and a guiding spirit, but no financial support. There were two reasons for finis lack of material assistance. First, fine movement was financially drained due to fine battle on the labor scene, particularly fine strike of the furries and fine cloakmakers, and could not firnarnce fine Farband. Also, fine Farband initially regarded the studio as no more than a minor activity. In fact, when fine Farband made abortive plans to organize an acting troupe, it did not even consider fine studio, but irnstead counted on fine participation of former mennbers of fine Habima andVilna Troupe. According to Budnwald, fine few Farband people who regarded fine studio as a potential core of fine future workers’ fineatre were scorned as unrealistic daydreamers.” The Farband also showed little appreciation for fine systematic studis to which fine studio had committed itself, and fine only one to support it were the few Farband people who served on fine studio’s board. On fine eve of fine official openirng of fine Artef thatre, irn Decerrnbe 1928, Buchwald stated publicly finat fine formation of the workes’ theatre was not fine outcome of any effort made by the Farband, but rafiner fine rault of fine grassroots initiative of fine studio’s members.zl Still, fine studio did benefit from its association with fine Farband. Its name began to appear in meetings and irn fine radical pres, bringing it to fine attention of fine public and of lending party figure. In addition, party irntellectuals would have been less willing to support fine studio and invet their time in it wifinout its official tie to the Farband and, through it, wifin fine radical movenent. Because fine Farband’s plans to build an acting company of its own did not mateialize, and because fine Freilneit Studio continued to function irn a satisfying and orderly manner, fine studio’s name began to be mentioned frequenfiy in connection wifin the hoped-for workers’ theatre. At a meeting

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WWW” Number of micro

Teacher

Subject

1. Metal

Dictionarnd Declamation

28

A. Teitelboim

Acting

38

M. Fokine

Plastic Movenent and Dance

16

P. Tchasin

Yiddish

M. Elkin

Dramaturgy

First Year (1925-26)

7

Second Year (1927-28) 10

M. Fokine

Plastic Movernent and Dance

18

P. Tchmin

Yiddish

32

K. Marmur

Dramatic literature

22

I. Shatsky

Theatre History

S. Beenson

Plastic Movernernt

12

1. Metal

Dictiorn and Declamation

90

5. Berenson

Plastic Movement

7

Third Year (1927-28) 82

B. Schneider

MakeUp

K. Marmur

Dramatic Literature

12

I.Shatsky I. Mate]

Theatre History

10

Acting

18

189

N. Buchwald

Theory of Theatre

S. Radomsky

Voice

12

P. Tchuin

Yiddish

13

9

Thom

37

of fine Farband in October 1927, it was already taken for granted finat fine studio would provide the pool of talent from which actors would be selected for such a venture. Journalist David Manievitz summed up the fineme of finis meeting, in which fine executive board of fine Farband voiced fine organization's growing desire to move into actual stage production: ”The Arbeter Teater Farband has engaged until now only in popularizing fine notion of proletarian fineatre finrouyn lectures, speeches, and symposia. The time has come to do something practical. ... We must get to work.” In the discussion finat followed, two lines of finought prevailed. The first, typical of finose who had little regard for studio work, claimed: 'ActinginfinefinatreisnotsuchabigdealJ'hereisnoneedtositandstudy dramficarbforyarsOnelamahowtorwiminwateandnotinaroom. ltispouibletotakepeopleofffinesfieetputfinemonfinestage,andfiney willperfomWhatmattersiswhatispefonnedandforwhatpurpoae."The followes ofthislinecited fineerrarrnpleoftheSoviet Union. There, fineyaaid, ”finatre is produced in all clubs, in all unions. Workirng men and women, with a good director incharge, act and they act well. Even thebig theatre usefincaepeople.letuswishwehadafineatreherelilreinfineSovietUnion.” Other, more professional voice, argued that finere was no feasible way, eifiner economically or artistiaily, to move ahead immediately, rent a fireatre, and begin production. What should be organized, finey claimed, were small-sale studio presentations for which no large budgets were needed, and which, in their modety, would not attempt to represent the ultimate model for proletarian theatre art. This more realistic approach was adopted, and the resolution of the meeting was to move into production irn fine near future. It was also agreed finat poet Moshe Nadir would play a major role irn carrying out fineie plarns. It is interating to note fine studio’s response to fine meeting. The students finemselvs insisted: ”We do not wish to be people off the street who play fineatre. We do not accept such a poirnt of view. We believe irn fine need to study.” This commitment to the principle of an ”art” fineatre typified the company finroughout its career. Once the members of the Freiheit Studio finished fineir training and graduated in December 1928, fine Artef organization continued to maintairn the studio systerrn irn order to secure a reservoir of actors for future needs. Five consecutive groups of students went through fine program between 1928 and 1937, patterned after fine model of the Freilneit Studio, which beerme known as fine First Studio.” Jacob Mestel directed the program, retaining his position as clnief diction and declamation instructor." Later on it was Benno Schneider, fine highly succesful resident director of the Artef

38

WWW”

theatre, who became fine program’s chief acting teacher. Metel’s affiliatian wifinfineArtefseemstohavecometoahaltinl930,tobereumedirn1935. Artef’s Second Studio opened irn 1928 wifin twenty-five students (12 women, 13 men), who wee later joined by finree more women and two men. Is students appered in seveal independent productions urnder fine sponsorship of fine Artef. The most notable wee Baryornr'n Kiklwt [Benjamin Quixote], Der tents fun (11' lrgfl-mentshn [The Dance of the Lufrnentshn], and Derlarrg aha dr' oelt, buflJruy [Hand Over the World, Bourgeois]. The first two, produced during fine 1929-30 season, wee Moshe Nadir's adaptations of well-known works by Mendele Moykher Sforim and Stolen Aieichen. The tlnird, produced during fine followirng season, was written by Nadir

himself. TheDarroeofthelrrfimtslm wasdnoreoyaphed by EdifinSegaLand fine ofine two producticms wee directed by Beuno Sdnrneider. In 1931, nine of fine students of fine Second Studio joirned fine Artef acting company as full-fledged members of fine collective. The Third Studio opened in 1931 wifin eleven students, five of whom later became members of fine Artef acting collective. Others took part as extras in mass scene and even had occasional small parts. The Fourfin Studio opened irn 1933 wifin ten students, who were joined in 1934 by nine new applicans. In 1935 fine Fifth Studio opened wifin fourteen students, who wee joirned by seven students from fine FourfinStudio and one student fromtheThird.Tlnesixfinandlaststudioopenedin1936wifinfifteen students, who were joirned by four studens of the Fiffin Studio. In 1935 an acting company made up of twenty-finree students was organized uncle fine direction of Jacob Metal. Known as fine Second Artef Collective, it was supposed to serve fine movement by offering small-scale mobile productions, and had vague hope of creating a secrnnd pemanernt fineatre. During fine 1935-36 season fine group offeed its own irndependent productions of Der shield [The Slave] and Der golderrrer burg [The Golden Hill] by Chaver Paver; Metel’s revival of Benjamin Quixote; Der urta-yl kurrrt [The Verdict Come] by Aaron Kushnirov; and, during fine following season, Shinel [The Overcoat], Chaver Pave’s adaptation of fine Gogol play, directed by Benjamin Zemach. lrn addition, members of fine group also presented irndividualdeclamations and short scene at evens conducted by left-wing organizations. The Secornd Collective ceased to exist durirng the following season. Accordirng to Metel, its demise was mosfiy fine actors’ fault. He claimed that because finey had been recruited from different studios, their profesional education was divese, and also charged that they were alien to fine Artef spirit and at time to fine Yiddish language. For fineir part, fine young actors claimed finey felt like second-class citizens who were unsuccessfully trying to live up to fine glory of the First Collective. Problemsalso stemmed from fine gradual change irn fine social and occupational background of fine studio members, a change reflecting fine transformation of fine

Them

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AmeicanlewishcommnmityWhilefinemakeupoffineSecondandThird

Studios was very similar to finat of fine Freilneit Studio, at least half of the students of fine later studios were white-collar workers and many of finen were first-generation Americans more fluent in English than in Yiddish. All told, fine Artef conducted six consecutive studios wifin 120 students, out of whidn grew a permanent collective of twenty-nine mennbes. Inaddition, ofiner studio members would play small parts in Artef productions. Metal proudly compared finee reults with those of fine Moscow studios, in which fine students went through a much harshe selection process and had to attend a full founyear program. He claimed that irn Moscow, finirty percent of fine students became actors in permanent fineatres. The Artef’s percentage stood at twenty-six percent, which Mestel consideed quite an achievement, considering fine immense difference irn firnancial resource between fine Yiddish workers’ fineatre and fine statesupported Russian system.”

NOTES 1. ThemajoraourmforfinehistoryoffineFrefindtDnmafisheSedsyeisAbnham l-lirahbe'n’satnortarticle'Doaker-rndlfunArtef" [‘11neKerneloffineArtef"],in MyorArteflTen Yen-rs ofArtef] (New York.- Artef, 19?),pp. 113-20.Additiornal information an be fournd in Jacob Metel’s article ”Di Artef studye” [”The Artef Studicn”], irn 'lsen yor Artef, p. 18, arnd in fine autobiographiml notices written for Tsen yor Artef by actors Hannah Snpiner (pp. 11-12), Moyshe Friedman (pp. 67—68), and Abraham Hirshbein (PP- 49-50).

2. [listed fineplayletsaccordingtofineinforrnationoffeedbyfineoriginalpro— gram of fine evening loated in fine Moyshe Friedman Collection at fine archive of fine YIVO lmtitute for ]ewisln Research. In his article "Dos kerndl fun Artef,” Hirshbeirn, who hirmeIf took part in the production, rnerntiorned the performance of a skit by Slnmuel Daixelentitled Shlofloznhyt [Sleeplesnes], which doe not appear in fine original program, yet he failed to mention Nadir's skit Di nrrryse mit'n kening [Tin Story oflhe King], even finough he had played one of its two part, according to fine program. Based cnn autobiographial notice written for Tsar yor Artef. Biography of Moyshe Friedman, in “Ben yor Artef, p. 68. Hiralnbein, ”Kendl," p. 119.

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». s a - y n o g

.

lbid., p. 120. Mestel, ”Artef studye,” p. 19.

. For a basic biography of Metel see ”Metel, Yakov,” in Ielsilmnfun yidishn

tater [lenm of the Yiddish Thane], comp. and ed. Zalmen Zylbercweig, asisted by Jacob Metel (Warsaw: published uncle fine auspices of fine Hebrew Actors Union of America, 1934), 11:1369—73. Also see Nakhman Mayzel, "Der

YiddishPrototananThoatm

. 10. 11.

12.

13.

14.

15. 16.

17. 18.

19. 20.

shafungs-veg fun yakov Metel” ["The Crative Path of Jacob Mestel”], Zalrnen Zylbercweig’s ”Mayn rrnestel" ["My Metel”), and Sarah KindmanMetel's ”Yacov Metel, de mentsh” ["Jacob Metel, fine Person”] in fine introductory section of Jacob Metel’s Ir'teratur un tater [literatureand 'l'hartre] (New York: [I