Jews on Broadway: An Historical Survey of Performers, Playwrights, Composers, Lyricists and Producers

by Stewart F. Lane

  Yiddish Theater Was Born

  The songs, the humor and the storylines were all provided by Goldfadn, who made sure his actors, usually two in a performance (which was all he could afford to pay), understood exactly what was expected of them. He did not write out most of the dialogue but had the actors impro vise based on the storyline. While the shows lacked the precision of a Shakespearian play, they brought together important elements in Jew ish culture, including song and humor. They were neither compli-cated nor scholarly, but met the demands of an audience that simply sought out good entertainment. While he did receive his share of criticism from those who thought he could provide more substance and sophistication in his works, Goldfadn learned quickly the importance of “giving the people what they wanted.” And with that in mind, he kept the songs light and humorous, simple and relevant to the performances, at least until the audiences became more familiar with the idea of theater.

  Sandrow also points out in her book that Goldfadn began what would become a tradition in Yiddish theater, known as the curtain speech. This occurred at the end of the show when Goldfadn would come out and talk to the audience. “He was a combination teacher, elo-cutionist and barker,” she explains.4

  Early comedies, including Shmendrik and the Two Kumi-Lemls, were based on simple premises, such as arranged marriages, and were immediately hits. Another popular show, The Witch, was about superstition.

  Soon other shows emerged about a wide range of familiar topics, each a 9

  Jews on Broadway

  hit. As Goldfadn’s legacy grew, so did Yiddish theater and his own company. His performers included Broder singers, cantors, cabaret performers, local workers, drifters, gamblers and yes, even actors ... some of the best of the time, including Jacob P. Adler.

  Goldfadn maintained tight control over everything from the venues to the costumes and the scenery to the props. He was steadfast in his ways and wanted everything to meet his wishes. Despite his control and his rising stardom, he was still unable to make very much money. Goldfadn was constantly promoting the shows to anyone who would listen, sometimes with great success and other times resulting in small turnouts.

  Long engagements were uncommon, and the company remained on the road for months at a stretch. As the overall popularity of Yiddish theater grew, other companies appeared. Some, like Goldfadn’s, were a diverse mix of talent, while others were family troupes. Some worked long hours to put on a first-rate production while others loosely organized a show and hoped for the best. There was little regard for copyright law, which was rarely enforced, so troupes that enjoyed the work of Goldfadn simply performed the same plays in another town or city. Often perform -

  ers who had worked with Goldfadn would leave his company and start their own. There was no great loyalty among most of the performers who often just wanted to keep working. Acting was then, as it is today, a difficult career choice.

  In a short time, Yiddish theater, in one form or another, was emerging as a cultural phenomenon throughout Eastern Europe. For the Jewish people, theater was becoming a way of life, providing entertainment and, as plays became more sophisticated, providing food for thought. It would all come to an abrupt end, however, with the assassination of Czar Alex -

  ander II, who had allowed great freedom for the Jewish people. Under his successor, Czar Alexander III, organized religious persecution against the Jewish people swelled throughout all of Eastern Europe. The Jewish people were forced into ghetto life, few were allowed to study or own land, and theater was all but eliminated. As Sandrow writes in her book,

  “The entire communities of Moscow, St. Peters burg and Kharkov were marched in manacles to the railway stations and expelled.”5

  Many of the Jewish actors fled to London, which would soon emerge as the new home of Yiddish theater. Israel Grodner, Jacob P. Adler and Anna Held were among the performers who settled in London’s Jewish 10

  1. Immigration, Yiddish Theater and Building Broadway section to take part in any of several Yiddish theater productions. The Jewish immigrants who had fled the persecution of Eastern Europe were thrilled to once again have the cultural connection that came from Yiddish theater. Shows were plen tiful, even in rooms adjacent to taverns, which were established as theater clubs. Jacob P. Adler once wrote of the Yiddish theater experience in London, “If Yiddish theater was destined to go through its infancy in Russia, and in America grew to manhood and success, then London was its school.”6 Adler was correct in acknowledging that the Jewish thespians were able to hone their craft without fear of religious persecution. Of course, in observance of the Sabbath, plays were not performed on Friday nights or until sundown on Saturdays.

  In a few years, however, there were more performers than shows in which to appear. Additionally, London had its own English-speaking the aters already established, thus creating more competition as the immigrants also began exploring the established theater. London’s East End was a poor neighborhood to begin with, so the influx of Jewish immigrants, including the many actors, was taking its toll on the inhabitants.

  Adding to the overcrowded living conditions were strict fire laws that were also imposed on the theaters. This made it more difficult for performers to find work on the stages of London. While Yiddish theater would continue successfully in London for several decades, it was destined to find a new home on the other side of the pond, so to speak, in America.

  Coming to America

  Along with many immigrants heading to the United States directly from Eastern Europe, many of London’s Jewish immigrants, includ ing some of the top performers on the Yiddish stages, boarded ships for America. Ellis Island was the final stop for millions of immigrants, including the Irish, the Italians, and the Jews, among others, seeking a better life in this new land of hope. Starting in 1881, some 1.3 million Jews would immigrate to America over a span of 22 years. While it was hard to find jobs and the living conditions on the Lower East Side were difficult and overcrowded, the freedom afforded to the Jewish people was better 11

  Jews on Broadway

  than life in Russia, Romania or Poland, along with slightly more living space and more job opportunities than in London.

  In 1882, Yiddish theater would first appear in America. It would blossom very quickly and become the cultural explosion of the era. “The Yiddish theater stars quickly became matinee idols, generating fanfare wherever they went. These were among the most influential actors of their time and they would go on to influence Jewish, and non–Jewish, per formers and playwrights for decades,” explains Nahma Sandrow.7

  Despite the eminent popularity of Yiddish theater, it got off to an inauspicious start in New York City. Two Russian performers, Leon and Miron Golubok, along with four members of their acting troupe, crossed the Atlantic Ocean to join Abe Golubok, who was already in New York City, working at a cigar factory with a young 12-year-old co-worker named Boris Thomashefsky. Together they formed the company that planned to stage what would be the first production of Yiddish theater in the United States, Goldfadn’s hit musical, The Witch. As the story goes, Thomashefsky and Abe Golubok persuaded a saloon owner, Frank Wolf, to finance the performance, as well as bring the company from Russia.

  Opening night, August 12, 1882, at Turn Hall on East Fourth Street, how ever, did not go as planned. As the story goes, something mysterious happened to the diva, who at the last minute had a headache and didn’t show up for the performance. Some claim that she was bribed by German Jews living uptown, who were embarrassed by what they considered the vulgar Lower East Side Yiddish-speaking crowd. As a result, the show never took place. However, what was significant was the huge turnout for this performance.

  While various versions of the same night differ regarding the influ -

  ence of the uptown Jews, it is widely agreed that a large crowd showed up for the big event. Some say the diva was eventually bribed by Thom -

  ashefsky and finally showed up late, while other accounts say she did not. Either way, the
show was never staged and the crowd left disappointed. Nonetheless, Yiddish theater would commence shortly thereafter and the crowds returned. Soon it would become a distinct part of the Jewish lifestyle. Sweatshop workers would set aside whatever money they could spare and buy tickets for the latest production. In time, the uptown Jews and those from all over the city, as well as non–Jews, were also tak -

  ing in the shows. The old Bowery Garden, a beer hall known mostly for 12

  1. Immigration, Yiddish Theater and Building Broadway vaudeville, was home to Yiddish shows on Friday afternoons, and despite the Sabbath, on Saturday afternoons. Even orthodox Jews attended the shows; however no actual business was transacted, and the lights were turned on the day before. Goldfadn’s productions were frequently presented at the Bowery Garden.

  Within a year, the Goluboks would form their own troupe, and Thomas hefsky, along with his sisters and his father, would form another.

  Other troupes were also soon emerging as more actors were emigrating from London to the American stage, including Jacob P. Adler. Every theater on the Lower East Side, and even some makeshift theaters, were clamoring for Yiddish theater productions. In fact, at one point there were as many as 14 shows being staged at once, rivaling Broadway.

  BORIS THOMASHEFSY AND JACOB P. ADLER:

  LEGENDS OF YIDDISH THEATER

  Boris Thomashefsky came to America in 1881 from the area around Kiev, in the Ukraine. He was 12 at the time and made the long trip with his family. Within a year, while working at the cigar factory, he began sing ing in a local synagogue. He possessed an outstanding voice, which was not surprising, since he came from a long line of cantors. At work, he learned from his elders some of the songs from the old country, where Yiddish theater had once flourished. Determined to bring those songs, along with the shows from which they originated, to his newfound home in New York, the young Thomashefsky would put together that first Yiddish theater production, The Witch.

  Despite the opening night disaster mentioned above, immigrants remained eager to see Yiddish theater productions, and Thomashefsky launched his career with his own companies. Just as Goldfadn was widely considered the father of Yiddish theater, Thomashefsky would soon be heralded as the founder of American Yiddish theater. Still a teenager, he would also take shows on the road and introduce Yiddish theater to Jewish communities in other cities. For a while he was even based in Chicago, building up the theater base in the Windy City.

  It was while touring, however, that he would land in Baltimore, where at the age of 18 he would meet a 14-year-old actress named Bessie Baumfeld-Kaufman. She was enamored with the theater and especially 13

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  Thomashefsky, whom she first saw dressed as a girl. She went backstage to meet the actress only to find out that under the wig was a handsome young teenage boy. Within days, Bessie would run away from home to join the company, and in a few years she and Thomashefsky would get married.

  Thomashefsky had a penchant for light operettas, musicals and comedy, much as Goldfadn had had in Eastern Europe. His voice, his good looks and his stage persona all rolled up into his becoming one of the major celebrities of the era. As Goldfadn had learned many years before, in Eastern Europe, Thomashefsky discovered early on that it was important to give the people what they wanted, and light musical entertainment fit the bill perfectly. When a new wave of half a million Jewish immigrants came into the country in the years between 1905 and 1908, he was ready with the light musical fare that they anticipated from the old country.

  Thomashefsky was a force in Yiddish theater and an icon whom young Jewish performers aspired to emulate. “A rock star of his time, women would swoon at his mere appearance on stage and he built a huge fan base not only on the Lower East side, but in other cities, from the tours of his company,” notes Sandrow.8 Among the many notable shows he produced and adapted for Yiddish theater, including those in which he performed, were Uncle Tom’s Cabin, East Lynn, Faust and The Green Millionaire.

  While many of the immigrants who flocked to Yiddish theater were still toiling away in sweatshops or as manual laborers, Thomashefsky became the wealthiest of the performers. Together with his wife Bessie, they became theater owners and magazine publishers while living in a 12-room home on Bedford Avenue in Brooklyn. They also raised funds for the needy and spent their own money to bring young actors from Eastern Europe to the United States.

  While a few of the stars of Yiddish theater made the crossover to American theater, Thomashefsky did not, as he was less comfortable performing in English. Years later, in 1931, he did co-write and perform in the Broadway musical The Singing Rabbi. The show only lasted three performances, but the legend of Thomashefsky lasted much longer. In fact, George Gershwin mentioned him in a couple of his songs and in the hit musical The Producers, Max Bialystock attributes his success as a Broadway producer to the tutelage of the great Boris Thomashefsky. A 14

  1. Immigration, Yiddish Theater and Building Broadway famous theater joke also surrounds Thomashefsky; whether it is accurate or not is anyone’s guess. It seems that Thomashefsky reputedly spent the night with a local prostitute. At the end of their time together he handed her a pair of tickets to a performance that evening of his latest play. The prostitute responded, “I really don’t need tickets, I need bread.” To this Thomashefsky replied, “If you wanted bread you should have slept with a baker.”

  Jokes notwithstanding, Thomashefsky remains a legendary figure from Yiddish theater, and his contributions had a lasting affect on American theater.

  Jacob P. Adler, meanwhile, was among those who came from London to take to the American stages of the Lower East Side. “He was a show off, and he was gorgeous,” says Ellen Adler, granddaughter of Jacob and daughter of Stella Adler. “He was the most famous of them all,”

  adds Ellen, regarding her grandfather’s much-heralded days on stage.9

  They called him the Great Eagle, since Adler is the German word for eagle, and because Adler soared as a performer. He was respected by his peers and revered by his fans. Adler first made his mark as a young actor in his home town of Odessa in the Russian Empire. He had a brief boxing career as a teenager, then took the footwork he’d learned and par -

  leyed it into a brief danc ing career, all the while gaining local notoriety.

  He was inspired by watching Israel Grodner perform and soon joined a Yiddish theater group in the 1870s. He would work hard and hone his acting skills in performances throughout Russia and Poland.

  Forced out of Russia by the religious persecution and strict laws that severely limited the activities of the Jewish people and made life unbearable, he would continue his acting career in London. Adler starred in The Odessa Beggar, which became one of the roles he would return to several times during his long career.

  The poverty and the overcrowded conditions of London’s East End would prompt him to pick up and move to the United States, where Yid dish the ater had already taken off. After establishing himself as a leading player in several productions, Adler started his own company, which would perform the works of novelist-turned-playwright Jacob Gordin.

  While musicals and comedies were enjoyed by the mainstream, Gordin wrote dramatic works based on classic literature, including a Yiddish version of King Lear, based loosely on the Shakespearian play. The play 15

  Jews on Broadway

  drew the usual Yiddish theater crowd plus a more sophisticated audience, not typically found in these theaters. The production starred both Jacob P. Adler and his third wife, Sara. “She was a great actress in her own right, very beautiful and well disciplined on stage,” says her granddaughter Ellen, a prolific painter. “There was so much talent in the Adler family,” she adds, recounting more than a dozen theatrical perform ers.10

  In the ensuing years, Adler would bring a significant number of more serious, noteworthy dramatic works to Yiddish theater, broadening the genre and introducing the immigrant audiences to great works includ ing those of Shaw and
Ibsen. Plays written in English were now performed on the Yiddish stages along with the original Yiddish works.

  In Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice, Adler played the role of Shylock to adoring audiences at the People’s Theater. Then, in 1903, the play would go to Broadway, in English, and Adler was asked to play the role again, which he did, speaking in Yiddish. The result was triumphant.

  When the play closed, however, Adler headed back to Eastern Eur -

  ope in an attempt to bring his family to America. His sister and her seven children would eventually come to the United States a few years later. Adler meanwhile returned to play Shylock on Broadway in a revival of the hit show. Having created a new character, a Yiddish Shylock on Broadway, Adler gained far more notoriety than ever before.

  Despite his Broadway success, the tradition that came from Yiddish theater was still closer to his heart. He would take on greater challenges, such as taking Tolstoy’s Power of Darkness, written in Russian, and bringing it to the stage in Yiddish. The play was a hit, as was Tolstoy’s Resur -

  rection. Both starred Adler, who in 1904 built the Grand Theater at the corner of Bowery and Canal Street.

  Until a stroke nearly ended his career and his life in 1920, Adler continued as a leading force in Yiddish theater, going on tour with Thom ashef sky at one point, but more significantly legitimizing the genre through the serious, thought-provoking works of Gordin, whom his daughter Stella has credited with making Jacob P. Adler’s career. While there was more money to be made through the lighter upbeat shows of Thomashefsky, Adler knew that given time, serious dramatic works would also become a staple in Yiddish theater, and he was right. He made an indelible mark in theater as a performer and as the patriarch of one of the most significant families in American theater.