Yankev Golman

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

Yankev Golman

Born on 10 March 1903 in Polotsk, White Russia. His father was a cabinet maker. He learned in a cheder, then in a city school. Early on he became an orphan. He had to be annoyed and took a handbag with bread from the bakery to the market. In 1914 he moved to Kharkov to an uncle, a tailor who took him under his wings and taught him the trade. However, due to the outbreak of the First World War, in which his uncle was taken into military service for, and nothing became of it. G. entered into Talmud Torah to learn, and possessing an alto voice, he sang at the same time in a Kharkov choral school, and in the evening he participated in children's roles with singing in the productions for the guest-starring Yiddish troupes for fifty kopecks a night, and if he stole a song, he would receive double pay.

In 1916 G. worked for a boot stitcher and became a member in the leather union and sang at the same time in a choral school. In 1919 G. traveled to Moscow and joined as a volunteer in the Red Army. In 1920 he found in the Crimea against vranglen [sp], and was wounded. He was brought back to Moscow. Being demobilized, he entered into work in a research department of the "Tsheka." In 1923 he went over to work in the Kharkov brush factory with the name of Frunze. In 1924 he joined the drama circle with the name of Kalinin.

In 1925 when there was organized in Kharkov the first Jewish State Theatre in the Ukraine, he joined in, but not being appreciated by the artistic direction, he left with several members of the theatre after one season to the Crimea, where they

organized, under the leadership of Semidor, a theatre that existed, due to S.'s death, but after a short time, G. returned to Kharkov's theatre. K. had in the theatre embodied the roles of "Feivel" in Kushirov's "Leckert," the fascist Zhigieda in "Shlakhtn oyfn merv" by Vishnyevsky, "Tshudnovski" in "Oyfn bart," "Nicholas II" in Gorki's "Shturm-foigl," "Masye Shkinde" in "Kadren (The Cadres)" by Mikitenko, "Kalman shadkhan" and "Motl" in "Di tsvey kuni lemels" [by Goldfaden] "Chaim Plut" in "Recruits" by Axenfeld, "Pinke veyl" in "Midt hdin" (Grenetsn) by David Bergelson, "Music Student" in "Kleinbirger un adltum" by Moliere.

Y. Lyubomirski characterizes him as such (1931):

"Came from a brush factory through the shul of the shul of the Red Army, a former member of a drama circle in a Jewish worker's club, Golman is one of the first working swallows in Kharkov's theatre. Golman is a good instrument for a good stage director. He stands out with their musical abilities. He feels particularly good in the comedy genre, has turned out to be a promising comedy actor in the following roles: 'The Poet' in 'Di letste,' 'Feivl' in 'Hirsch Leckert,' and the communist Chudnovsky in 'Barg aroyf.' The sum of all of them is the poet in "The Last." You have a definite eccentric graphic in motion here, a hopeful joke. All of this makes this figure believable. There is an alarming character in a provincial compulsive writer.

In Chudnovsky's 'Barg aroyf' already the humor that springs forth invariably from Golman is like a fresh fountain. Golman would not be harmed by sharper measures portraying the dormant communist. You need to emphasize more strongly, that this is a poor thing (lemeskhe). In the role of 'Feivl' ('Leckert'), which says very much the view Who says very much the viewer, bash. Seemingly transformed into a women's dress, Excite you, That the artist does not click any text. The playwright has, with a stinginess, has neatly stretched the figure. With a special brilliance, Golman plays Mr. Katty in 'Der gedekte kortn (The Covered Cards).' With the adopted member of his fresh and juicy vocals, he plays an entire series of spectacles.

Golman is still an actor, of course, young, But he can already pretend to work on a broader base. He broke up beforehand. It is tight to him in the frames in which he has previously worked. Finally, he received a great deal of interesting work in the play of Mikitenko's 'Kadren (The Cadres)'."

Sh.E. from Mark Leiptsiker.

Adapted from the original Yiddish text found within the "Lexicon of the Yiddish Theatre" by Zalmen Zylbercweig, Volume 7, page 6352.