‘Romerika’: A Legacy of Yiddish Theatre

Join Maestro Aaron Kula and award-winning entertainer Avi Hoffman as they celebrate the historical origins of the Yiddish Theatre in Romania and its evolution to mainstream world culture. In the early to mid 19th century, Jewish entertainers began to perform throughout Eastern Europe. Starting with the Badchonim – the Jewish wedding-jesters and the traveling Klezmer musicians, this mixture of music and melodrama became very popular with the Jewish masses. Avrom Goldfadn, the Father of Yiddish Theatre, began writing songs and sketches and eventually moved to Iasi, Romania.

The success of the Yiddish theatre traveled with those escaping the hardships of Jewish life in Europe, as they came to America to find safety and build a new life. The Jewish immigrants flocked to the many theatres on 2nd Avenue in New York, where they could see the great stars of the Yiddish theater – Maurice Schwartz, Boris Thomashevsky, Jacob P. Adler and Molly Picon.

The Yiddish theatres became the foundation for the Golden Age of American creativity which influenced every aspect of world culture. From music to comedy to film and television, the Yiddish theatre which began in Romania, went on to become the greatest influence not only on American culture, but on the stages of the entire world.











When: Fri., Dec. 27, 2019 at 8:00 pm - 10:00 pm
Where: Theater for the New City
155 First Ave.
212-254-1109
Price: $18
Buy tickets/get more info now
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Join Maestro Aaron Kula and award-winning entertainer Avi Hoffman as they celebrate the historical origins of the Yiddish Theatre in Romania and its evolution to mainstream world culture. In the early to mid 19th century, Jewish entertainers began to perform throughout Eastern Europe. Starting with the Badchonim – the Jewish wedding-jesters and the traveling Klezmer musicians, this mixture of music and melodrama became very popular with the Jewish masses. Avrom Goldfadn, the Father of Yiddish Theatre, began writing songs and sketches and eventually moved to Iasi, Romania.

The success of the Yiddish theatre traveled with those escaping the hardships of Jewish life in Europe, as they came to America to find safety and build a new life. The Jewish immigrants flocked to the many theatres on 2nd Avenue in New York, where they could see the great stars of the Yiddish theater – Maurice Schwartz, Boris Thomashevsky, Jacob P. Adler and Molly Picon.

The Yiddish theatres became the foundation for the Golden Age of American creativity which influenced every aspect of world culture. From music to comedy to film and television, the Yiddish theatre which began in Romania, went on to become the greatest influence not only on American culture, but on the stages of the entire world.

Buy tickets/get more info now