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
 

Vera Zisman


 

Y. Lubomirski characterizes her thus (1931):

She is an actress with a fine, wide voice with a svelte figure and outstanding diction. She graduated the Theatre-Studio school of the “Culture League.” The only problem is that after finishing the school she was separated from the professional theatre for some time. This separation from the stage caused her to be indecisiveness in form when she attempts to portray a character. What more, she lacks technique, mastery and most importantly ---self-assuredness. She is an actress well suitable for lyrical performances. She possesses warmth and sincerity. However, her personas are always unfulfilled emotionally. It seems that as far as time is concerned she is trying to relive all that has occurred to her characters. She has attempted to play character roles such as Mendeleche in “Nit Gedayget,” and it wasn’t bad. It is to her credit that she chooses to play character roles. She need altogether to practice appearing in a wide variety of roles in order to gradually overcome her stiffness and the over-acting which appears from time to time in her performances. For example, in the persona of Maria in “Blut” there appears, in her depiction, a very imposing figure but she plays it in an unsettled manner from moment to moment; she appears nervous. And that is because she lacks the freedom in her movement and in the tone, which is characteristic of a veteran actor with lots of technique.

I think that in heroic, lyrical roles she will be welcome material.

  •  Y. Lubomirski -- "The Royal Yiddish Theatre in Ukraine," Kharkov, 1931, pp. 103-104.


 

 

 

 


 

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Adapted from the original Yiddish text found within the  "Lexicon of the Yiddish Theatre" by Zalmen Zylbercweig, Volume 7, page 6354.
 

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