Sh. produced a cycle of five
mystical stories, "Tzelomim" (Idols), and translated
from the Norwegian with the permission of the author,
Knute Hampton's "The Blessing of the Earth" (Warsaw
1926) and "Children of their Times" (New York 1926). He
also authored a book, "Shpilarayin (Games), New York and
matones (Gifts).
Sh. produced a series of
children holiday plays, such as "Chanukah Money" "Shalakh
Mones" (sending food portions on Purim), "Repititziah"
(Rehearsal), and "Grins oyf Shavuos" (Vegetables on
Shavuot), all of which were performed in Yiddish
schools.
On the 28th of December1936 Sh. died in Los
Angeles, California.
Y. Steinbaum wrote about the
one-act play "Chanukah Money":
"This play is about what
children will do with money that they collect on the
holiday. The contents are understood without asking
permission from the author: In a school, children
receive Chanukah money and a fight breaks out among
them. Some say that the money should be given to the
strikers. Others disagree while others don’t. Finally,
it is decided to put on a play, collect money and send
it to the strikers. Sending money in support of the
strikers is a very fine thing to do. especially when
children take it on and then decided to earn the money
themselves. But—what have strikers to do with the
holiday, Chanukah? Aren’t there enough other days in the
calendar to do that? Is it only on Chanukah that our
children can do something for them? And also, why do we
have to put children through such an experience? Why
does it have to be Chanukah money? Why give the money
away, either to the political left or to the political
right? From such heated arguments one can grow very
disillusioned."
Delivering a short bit of
Y.Y. Segal’s article in "Der kanada adler" (The Canadian
Eagle), where "Der kanada adler" talks about it on the
"literary pages".
"It’s possible to say, that
he, Schneider possessed a talented, refined ear for
words. He knew Yiddish as well as any very cultured,
well-off person. Intuitively he knew and understood the
ingredients that a person possesses and the totality and
innermost harmony of language. As a result such a person
was able and know how to make stylish use of it. Wasn’t
such a story once written about Hannah and her seven
sons? What was their purpose, to die in order not to
serve all the idols? Enough! If it’s already written
why must it be printed? I also know how to read and I
too can stage such plays which, with the passage of
time, can create a heated debate among the children; to
whom does the money belong?"
Sh.'s published plays:
1. Shlomo Schneider
Grins oyf shavuos
(a Shavous play)
["Kinder zhurnal," N.Y., May 1928]
1a. "Di yidishe tsaytung,"
Buenos Aires, 14 June 1929.
1b. [F"g "Naye yidishe
folksshul," Vilna, 20 pp.]
2. Shlomo Schneider
Chanukah Money
(a Chanukah play)
["Kinder zhurnal," N.Y., November 1928.]
3. Shlomo Schneider
Shalakh-Mones
(a Purim play)
[dort]
4. Shlomo Schneider
Rehearsal
[Passover play)
["Kinder zhurnal," N.Y., March 1928]
-
Z. Reisen --
"Lexicon of Yiddish Literature," Vilna, 1929,
Vol. 4, pp. 834-836.
-
Y. Steinbaum --
Bamerkungen fun a lerer, "Tsukunft," N.Y.,
January 1929.
-
Necrology in "Literarishe
bleter," Warsaw, N' 9, 1936.
-
[--] fun
tsvaytungen in zhurnaln, dort, N' 13, 1936.
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