Born on May 14, 1886 in Kiev, Ukraine. His father owned a butcher shop. Dubinsky studied at a cheder until he was fourteen years old and, at the same time, had a tutor for general studies. He showed an  exceptional inclination for music and aspired to become a violinist, studying violin in a music school in Kiev for four or five years. After his father died, he had to be the bread-winner for his family and began to play the violin with Fishzon’s troupe, where he developed a strong yearning for the stage. After playing in an orchestra for a year, he began his studies at the Sokratov's drama school for actors, where he remained for two years.

Dubinsky made his debut on stage in a performance of Sokratov’s pupils acting in the main role in Pushkin’s “The Avaricious Knight”. He then toured the province, but changed his mind about becoming a Russian actor because he objected to converting to Christianity.

In 1906 he went to America, entered a workshop and joined Entin’s Progressive Dramatic Club where he stayed for five years as a Yiddish beginning actor in Pshivishevski’s “ The Golden Asset”. Then he joined the Ukrainian Meadows Troupe and traveled with them all over the United States for a few years as well as participating, every now and then, in Yiddish plays.

In 1917 Dubinsky became a union member and joined Schwartz [at the Yiddish Art Theatre], where he played for three seasons, then two seasons at Edelstein’s with Michalesko and Valier again at the [Yiddish] Art Theatre, in Philadelphia with Goldenburg, and five years with Norman’s (two seasons in Brooklyn, one season in Chicago, one at the Folks Theatre [People’s Theatre] in New York, and in 1929-30 at the Rolland Theatre.

Dubinsky participated in the Hebrew production of Hirshbein’s “The Blacksmith's Daughter” in New York.

 

M. E.