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
 

David Abrams
 

 

Born on 28 April 1884 in Tiraspol, Ukraine. At the age of eight he entered into R' Hershel's Yeshiva in Uman and learned in a Talner circle. In 1896 he immigrated with his family to London, where A. worked during the day as a boot stitcher, and in the evening he learned with R' Aba Verner, the rabbi of "Mkhziki kds", and at the same time A. learned English, and four years later A. entered into the English Henry Irving Dramatic and Literary Club.

In 1902 A. founded, together with Y. L. Cahan the "Forward Club (Union)" in London, in which Y. L. Cahan used to each Sunday read about literature, and A. used to sing Yiddish folksongs, reading and reciting from Yiddish classics and imitating the then famous English actors. A year later, A. published in  the "Yiddish Telegraph" a series of articles about Yiddish theatre in London.

In 1907 A. arrived in America and there took courses, especially about drama and theatre problems, was for a time active and also president of a literary dramatic club.

Being an active collaborator in the workshop, A. also was active in the labor organization of the Actor's Union, and he led a strike of the Yiddish actors due to the lockout of Michael Mintz and Lipzin during the guest appearance of Komisarzhevska. Afterwards A. was active in the People's union support of the Art Theatre, and with the creating of the Theatre Worker's Union, where he is an executive member and secretary of the union. In 1929 -- vice-president of "Artef", from which he resigned at the end of the same year.
 

Sh. E.


 

 

 

 


 

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Adapted from the original Yiddish text found within the  "Lexicon of the Yiddish Theatre" by Zalmen Zylbercweig, Volume 1, page 49.
 

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