National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene Presents
The Sorceress: A Yiddish Musical Fantasy
December 1 – 29, 2019
This December, the National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene (NYTF) will present the First Yiddish Production Ever Done in America: The Sorceress (Di Kishefmakherin), a magical, musical Yiddish fantasy.
This musical, written in 1878, is one of the earliest works of Yiddish theater and the first formal Yiddish theatrical production introduced in America by the celebrated Thomashefsky family. The fully restored orchestrations are based, in part, on pre-Holocaust musical arrangements which were saved from destruction at the hands of the Nazis by the famed “Paper Brigade” of the YIVO Institute in Vilna, who risked their lives to save thousands of unique documents and manuscripts. This fully staged work is the culmination of a project which NYTF began in 2017 to restore this classic.
“The Sorceress was one of the earliest Yiddish operettas to cross the Atlantic Ocean, and the first piece brought to life under our Global Restoration Initiative, staged in workshop form. The response was truly phenomenal, inspiring us to present this cultural gemstone on a grander scale this season, with exquisite orchestrations and magnificent performances,” said NYTF Artistic Director Zalmen Mlotek. Added Associate Artistic Director Motl Didner, “The Sorceress opened the door to Yiddish Theater in America, where it has thrived for more than 150 years. It is a uniquely Jewish fairy tale that is delightful, charming and historic, and with a timely message.”
Inaugural Presentation of the NYTF Global Restoration Initiative
The Sorceress is the first complete work following the efforts of NYTF’s Global Restoration Initiative, which identifies the best examples of Yiddish operettas, musicals, and plays, reassembles librettos and scores in a digital format (rendering them useable to artists and scholars), and displays the works to audiences, often for the first time in a half-century or more.
The performance is part of NYTF’s season of “Spiritual Resistance,” which features artistic and theatrical works that explore themes of struggle against oppression. The programming provides artistic expression concurrent with the exhibition Auschwitz: Not long ago. Not far away. being presented at the Museum of Jewish Heritage – A Living Memorial to the Holocaust.
The Sorceress, starring an innocent young heroine, her dashing fiancé, a devious stepmother, and a scheming witch that takes its audience into a world of illusion, intrigue, and suspense.
Written by Avrom Goldfaden, directed by Motl Didner, with musical direction by Zalmen Mlotek. The production will be choreographed by Merete Muenter, and D. Zisl Slepovitch will provide additional orchestrations and arrangements.
The Sorceress will be performed in Yiddish, with English and Russian supertitles.
The Sorceress
December 1 to 29
at the Museum of Jewish Heritage – A Living Memorial to the Holocaust,
Edmond J. Safra Plaza, 36 Battery Place, NYC.
TICKETS: visit NYTF.org or call 866-811-4111
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