perenson/moshe

Lives in the Yiddish Theatre
SHORT BIOGRAPHIES OF THOSE INVOLVED IN THE Yiddish THEATRE
aS DESCRIBED IN zALMEN zYLBERCWEIG'S "lEKSIKON FUN YIDISHN TEATER"
1931-1969

Moshe Perenson

Born on 24 December 1902 in Warsaw, Poland. His parents were merchants. He learned in the trade school with the Warsaw Jewish community, and after that a long time with private teachers. After the trade school he participated in Polish in the school productions, and as a member in "HaShomer HaTzair" he was involved in evenings and entertainments.

In 1918 entered into the Bundist youth organization "Tsukunft", and actively participated in the Polish activities and was one of the founders of the dramatic circle with the organization, participating outside in the production of one-acters, also in work academies, entertainments and evenings with recitations and monologues. For a short time he learned dramatic arts with actor Elihu Stein, and in 1922 entered into the first Yiddish dramatic school et al of director M. Weichert. During his service in the Polish military, he acted in Polish in the main role in the comedy "Der zelner fun der madagaskarkenigin" in Suwalki.

1925 -- took over the leadership and direction of the dramatic section off "Tsukunft" in Warsaw, and until the outbreak of the second World War (1939) staged the following: Anski's "In a konspirativer dirh", Sholem Aleichem's "Farbitn di yutsrus", Sholem Aleichem-Arones' "Luftprnsus", Moishe Nadir's "Moshiakh in amerike" and "Oyf yener velt", H. Leivick's "Keytn" and the third act of "Shmates", the second act of Sholem Asch's "Koyln", fragments of Sophocles' "Antigone", E. Toller's "Masn-

mentsh" and "Hoplia, mir lebn", the third scene from Zheromski's "Ruzsha", mass offerings of David Eynhorn's "Rekviem", and "Hent", B. Shenlang's "Tog fun yugnt", Moshe Broderzon's "Iberbrukh", his own settings for Remarque's "Oyfn merb keyn neyes", and (in 1930 and 1932) two satirical Polish revues.

P. was a co-founder of the central for dramatic circles with the society "Yidishe bine", and Poland, and he had the opportunity to publish an entire range of reviews, articles and papers about theatre and performers in the "Neye folkstseytung", a weekly", "Yung-veker" and "Faroys>

Shortly after Himmler's capture of Warsaw, he fled to Lithuania, where he directed with the students of the real school in Vilna (in Yiddish folks theatre), on 14 June, during the Peretz changes, his own dramatization of Y. L. Peretz's "Msirs-nfsh", in fourteen scenes, music by Gerstein, settings by Sher.

In 1941, after a long wandering across Lithuania, Soviet Russia and Japan, he arrived in America and settled in New York, where he became the drama teacher in the "Sholem Aleichem Middle School", and there directed outside of several one-acters a montage "Khsrilefke", according to Sholem Aleichem. He also was the drama director of Camp "Ney-velt", and he performed as a recitator and monologist in social activities.

M. and Sh. E.

Adapted from the original Yiddish text found within the "Lexicon of the Yiddish Theatre" by Zalmen Zylbercweig, Volume 3, page 1847