Yiddish Empire: The Vilna Troupe, Jewish Theater, and the Art of Itinerancy

Caplan, Debra

doi:doi:10.3998/mpub.9533320

Debra Caplan

2018

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Yiddish Empire tells the story of how a group of itinerant Jewish performers became the interwar equivalent of a viral sensation, providing a missing chapter in the history of the modern stage. During World War I, a motley group of teenaged amateurs, impoverished war refugees, and out- of- work Russian actors banded together to revolutionize the Yiddish stage. Achieving a most unlikely success through their productions, the Vilna Troupe (1915– 36) would eventually go on to earn the attention of theatergoers around the world. Advancements in modern transportation allowed Yiddish theater artists to reach global audiences, traversing not only cities and districts but also countries and continents. The Vilna Troupe routinely performed in major venues that had never before allowed Jews, let alone Yiddish, upon their stages, and operated across a vast territory, a strategy that enabled them to attract unusually diverse audiences to the Yiddish stage and a precursor to the organizational structures and travel patterns that we see now in contemporary theater. Debra Caplan's history of the Troupe is rigorously researched, employing primary and secondary sources in multiple languages, and is engagingly written.

ISBN(s)

978-0-472-03725-4 (paper)
978-0-472-12368-1 (ebook)
978-0-472-13077-1 (hardcover)

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Original sketch for FADA's logo

From Chapter 2

Leyb Kadison and Alexander Asro's original logo sketch for the Fareyn fun Yididsh Dramatishe Artistn (Federation of Yiddish Dramatic Actors, or FADA), the company that would later become known as the Vilna Troupe. Vilna, 1915.

FADA logo from an early program

From Chapter 2

FADA logo from an early program, published in Vilna, 1916

Black-and-white photograph of actor Alexander Asro reclining with his hands around his knees

Got, mentsh, un tayvl (God, Man, and Devil), Vilna, 1916

From Chapter 2

Alexander Asro as Satan in Got, mentsh, un tayvl (God, Man, and Devil) by Jacob Gordin, Vilna 1916

Black-and-white photograph of actor Alexander Asro striking a pose

Got fun nekome (God of Vengeance), Vilna, 1916

From Chapter 2

Alexander Asro as Yankl Tsaptchovitch in Sholem Asch's Got fun nekome (God of Vengeance), Vilna 1916

Black-and-white photograph of actor Alexander Asro holding a cigarette.

Eyferzukht (Jealousy), Vilna, 1916

From Chapter 2

Alexander Asro as Sergei Petrovitch in Eyferzukht (Jealousy) by Mikhail Artsybashev, Vilna 1916

Black-and-white photograph of actor Alexander Asro thumbing through the pages of a book.

Der meshugener batlen (The Mad Scholar), Berlin, 1921

From Chapter 3

Alexander Asro as the title character of Der meshugener batlen (The Mad Scholar) by Y. L. Peretz. Produced by Azro and Alomis's Vilna Troupe in Berlin, 1921.

Black-and-white photograph of actor Alexander Asro and actress Sonia Alomis embracing

Alexander Asro and Sonia Alomis at a dress rehearsal in Berlin, 1921

From Chapter 3

Alexander Asro and Sonia Alomis at a dress rehearsal in Berlin, 1921

Black-and-white photograph of actor Alexander Asro in costume.

Grine felder (Green Fields), Leipzig, 1922

From Chapter 3

Alexander Asro as Levi-Yitskhok in Grine Felder (Green Fields) by Peretz Hirschbein. Performed by Asro and Alomis's Vilna Troupe in Leipzig, 1922.

Black-and-white photograph of three actors in Jewish religious costumes.

Der dibek (The Dybbuk), Berlin, 1923

From Chapter 3

Alexander Asro as Khonen (left), Noah Nachbush as the Messenger (center), and Sonia Alomis as Leah (right) in Der dibek (The Dybbuk) by S. An-sky. Performed by Asro and Alomis's Vilna Troupe in Berlin, 1923.

Black-and-white photograph of a wedding scene.

Wedding scene from Der dibek (The Dybbuk), Paris, 1923

From Chapter 3

The wedding scene from Der dibek (The Dybbuk) by S. An-sky. Performed by Asro and Alomis's Vilna Troupe in Paris, 1923.

Black-and-white photograph of two actors on the deck of a ship arriving in New York harbor.

Alexander Asro and Sonia Alomis arriving in New York, 1924

From Chapter 4

Alexander Asro and Sonia Alomis arriving in New York on board the Majestic, January 10, 1924

Black-and-white photograph of two actors and their young son.

Alexander Asro and Sonia Alomis with their son, Joseph Asro

From Interlude III

Alexander Asro (left) and Sonia Alomis (right) with their son Joseph Asro (center). Asro and Alomis had to leave Joseph behind in Europe when they immigrated to the United States in 1924. Joseph Asro did not see his parents for six years while they worked on acquiring citizenship.

Yiddish Empire: The Vilna Troupe, Jewish Theater, and the Art of Itinerancy

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Original sketch for FADA's logo

FADA logo from an early program

Got, mentsh, un tayvl (God, Man, and Devil), Vilna, 1916

Got fun nekome (God of Vengeance), Vilna, 1916

Eyferzukht (Jealousy), Vilna, 1916

Der meshugener batlen (The Mad Scholar), Berlin, 1921

Alexander Asro and Sonia Alomis at a dress rehearsal in Berlin, 1921

Grine felder (Green Fields), Leipzig, 1922

Der dibek (The Dybbuk), Berlin, 1923

Wedding scene from Der dibek (The Dybbuk), Paris, 1923

Alexander Asro and Sonia Alomis arriving in New York, 1924

Alexander Asro and Sonia Alomis with their son, Joseph Asro

Signed photograph of Mary Martin

Signed photograph of Sophie Tucker

Sonia Alomis and Alexander Asro with their son after World War II