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Sigmund Weintraub
(Zygmunt)
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Born in November 1874 in
Belz, Bessarabia. Parents -- owners of a haberdashery
business. Until age eleven he learned in cheders and in
a governmental school, later with a teacher.
In 1888 he immigrated to New
York, where he became a fur worker , learning further
and joining in a chorus of Goldfaden's dramatic circle
later in Feinman's dramatic school. Here he performed
for the first time in a small role in "Di farblondzhete
neshamos", later in the same circle in Gordin's name as
"David Moisheles" in Gordin's "King Lear", and from time
to time he acted as a "lover" in Adler's troupe.
1892-3 -- W. became engaged
as a professional in Spachner's section of the "Thalia"
Theatre for Philadelphia with Feinman at its head.
However the troupe did not last long. The New York
actors returned to New York, and W. with only several
minor actors remained to act in Philadelphia. To them
came Kestin and Frank, and togther they toured for six
years across the province. Then Thomashefsky brought him
to New York, where W. began to at in a variety theatre
with his translated one-acter "Er un zi". Then he acted
in other self-translations and adapted one-acters.
W. founded then the actors
union Local 5.
Later W. became a member in
the actors union, and for a certain time also was its
president, acting for a season in the Windsor Theatre
with Thomashefsky at the Peoples Theatre and then in |
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the National (ten to eleven
seasons). For one season he traveled with Lipzin across
the province, single seasons with Lipzin, Adler-Moshkovitsh,
Rosa Karp in the Liberty, where he also became a
co-director, then he became by himself director of the
Liberty Theatre and acted there until 1919. In 1920 --
acted with Berl Bernstein for a season in Chicago, 1921
in the Irving Place Theatre in New York, and 1922-3 in
the Prospect Theatre and across the province.
W. participated in Sidney
Goldin's film "Des hoykers roman".
In 1923 W. withdrew from the
stage and opened in New York, at first by himself, then
together with E. A. Relkin, a theatre office that
arranged the guest appearances of troupes and "stars"
across the American province.
M. E.
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B. Gorin -- "History
of Yiddish Theatre", Vol. II, p. 179.
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Jacob Kirschenbaum --
Kunst un kinstler, "Di idishe velt", Cleveland, June
1915.
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Uriel Mazik --
Bilder-galereye fun unzere idishe shoyshpiler, "Der
tog", N. Y., 12 January 1918.
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