DAVID HERMAN THEATRE
Arguably the greatest involvement of youth at the Kadimah was through the Yiddish theatre that was associated with the Kadimah. Youth were involved both through participation in the productions and through being a part of the Yiddish theatre audience of Melbourne.
The Kadimah, as a cultural institution had run poetry readings and small performances. It was out of this home for the Yiddish arts that organized Yiddish theatre in Melbourne was born.The first play to be staged by the Kadimah, on 5 October 1925, was Tsezeyt un Tseshpreyt (Scattered and Dispersed), a play written by the famous Yiddish writer Sholem Aleichem.[1] At this time, the Kadimah was still located at 313 Drummond Street in Carlton, which could only fit 150 people. Because the play proved to be in high demand, it opened at the Temperance Hall, which could fit larger crowds.[2] With the success of this production came the real emergence of Yiddish theatre in Melbourne and, particularly the Kadimah’s theatre group, the Kadimah Drama Circle.[3] The growing Yiddish theatre in Melbourne could also be largely accorded to the growing number of Eastern European Jewish immigrants who were arriving in Melbourne during this period. During the 1920s, around two thousand Polish Jews arrived in Melbourne.[4] Thus, the number of Yiddish-speakers in Melbourne grew, encouraging a larger Yiddish theatre audience. It was also during this period that Yiddish actor, Yankev Ginter arrived in Melbourne. After his arrival, in March 1927, Ginter joined the Kadimah Drama Circle. [5] However, after performing in several productions, he formed his own Yiddish theatre group in that same year, the Yidishe Bine (Yiddish stage).[6] When, in 1940, the Yiddishe Bine and the Kadimah Drama Circle joined together, the Dovid Herman Teater (David Herman Theatre) was born, named after the famous Yiddish theatre director Dovid Herman.[7] As author Arnold Zable writes, “The David Herman Theatre was always, first and foremost, a communal affair, a people’s theatre”.[8] This ensured involvement of the youth. In the post-Holocaust era, for a community that was so heavily impacted by Holocaust survivors, the sense of longing to rebuild a vibrant Yiddish theatre was evident in the involvement of the Yiddish-speaking youth of Melbourne. |
Melbourne Yiddish Youth Theatre
The Melbourne Yiddish Youth Theatre (MYYT) was born out of the David Herman Theatre. Whilst the David Herman Theatre was primarily for adult actors, with the exception of some young actors, the MYYT was a youth theatre group. It was originally established in 1974 and was led by Fay Mokotow, a young community activist.[9] The group consisted of roughly thirty members who ranged from teenagers to those in their twenties. As Alex Dafner, current president of the Kadimah and member of this theatre group explained, “The advantage of youthfulness [was] its best weapon to attract young people”.[10]
Well-known actors, directors, writers, musicians and producers of this group included Alex Dafner, Henry Nusbaum, Arnold Zable, Freydi Mrocki, Tomi Kalinski, Joe Tigel, Doodie Ringelblum, Elisa Gray, Jerry Diner, Arlette Patt, Charles Slucki, Michael Gawenda, Lily Kochen, Essie Lustig, Leon Gettler and other dedicated members of the Yiddish theatre.[11] These individuals took it upon themselves to save the Yiddish theatre for the next generation. Indeed, in 2010, at a Yiddish performance evening held at the Kadimah entitled Chai Society, a young group of Yiddish actors emerged called YOYA, who performed a production called A Mishugas, a script they had written incorporating Yiddish translations of Gilbert and Sullivan songs that had been created in the United States. The project was developed under the influence of Freydi Mrocki, Tomi Kalinski and Reyzl Zylberman, with the assistance of Elisa Gray.The MYYT performed a range of plays, including original Yiddish plays and Yiddish translations of English plays, as well as plays written for the theatre group. These productions have included 200,000, Der Tog Bukh Fun Ana Frank (The Diary of Anne Frank), and original plays such as Mazl Tov Cobbers.[12] Below, you will find a video, which includes an audio track from a MYYT’s performances, Nign (Tune), performed in 1988, and depicts the posters of some of the plays performed during its existence. |
“It is to the credit of a youth who has discovered the beauty and heritage of Yiddish and its great theatrical tradition”.[13]
- Alex Dafner |