The subject of the play
was taken from P.'s poem "Oyfn veg (On the
Road?)" (Warsaw 1919)
and was based on the folk legend about the handsome
young tailor, who had allowed himself to be buried
alive, so as not to give in to the desire in him for
the landowner's daughter. On the same theme there
was written Harry Sackler's play "Yiskor," which was
staged on 13 April 1923 in New York's Art Theatre
(filmed by the same troupe in 1924 in Vienna, and "Der
feldsher-yung" by Alter Eisenschloss, staged on 31
January 1925 in Lodz.)
The play was later
performed over many cities of Poland during the
guest appearances of the Vilna Troupe.
In December 1931 the
play in Hebrew was, in the translation of M.
Wolfanski, under the direction of H. Halevi (?), was
staged in Tel Aviv by the troupe of "Ohel."
The play also was
translated into Polish by Celina Meyerson.
In 1932 in Warsaw there
was published P.'s dramatic poem "Shlomo Hamelekh
(Solomon the King)", which was not staged.
At the end of 1935 in
Warsaw, there was staged P.'s play by the Yiddish
experimental studio "Yung Teater":
Simche Plachte, a comedy
in three acts, dramatized and staged by Michael
Brandt (directed by Michael Weichert), music by
Henekh Kon, scenery and costumes by Dina Matis,
choreography by Rena Spatsenkop, with the following
personnel in the main roles:
Simche Plachte
Beile
R' Yosele Parnes
Malkha'le
Der Litvak
Tsipe
Der Prints |
|
W. Heiblum
B. Gudis
Y. Glikson
A. Hauer
F. Sivak
D. Fakel
F. Ziegelbaum |
[The subject of "Simche
Plachte" was taken from the small book of Jacob
Morgenstern (according to Zalmen Reyzen--the
pseudonym of Y. Katshko), a religious teacher, a
"writer," who also took up with shadchans and
also performed as a badkhan, was born in 1820
and passed away in 1890 (according to the director
Avi Cohen--in 1895):
R' Simche Plachte, or,
Der Velt Shvindler (The World Crook?)
Every person who virn
the story lezen, Have great fergnigen,
young and old, poor and rich, will be free to
everyone immediately. The story virn the
readers to make vasen, everyone who reads
virn, Virn must laugh. To give out fon
R' Yakov Morgenstern called Jacob Lehrer oys lodz.
The book may have been
published for the first time in 1879 in Warsaw, and
later many times reprinted (1881-Warsaw, 1895-Vilna,
1909-Vilna, 1910-Warsaw, and also later than that
date. According to Reyzen, there may also have been
a Premysl edition.
As to the second variant
of the Purimshpiel "Der khokhem mitn nar," printed
in I. L. Cohen's "Yidisher folklor" (Vilna, 1938,
pp. 222-229), the director Itzhak Shipper, that:
"The variant was
actually a compilation of two plays, today: 1) a
play with a 'Simcha Plachte'-motif, Where it has on
an intellectual way identified the regime of rebbes,
and 2) a play, that one can characterize it as a
recruiting play.
... The play with the 'Simcha
Plachte' motif has a prominent, intellectual poetry
which also is sharply applied against Chasidism and
especially about the false regime of the rabbis. It
glances here by prominent notions of the
intellectual repertoire of the Broder Singer,
especially of the anti-Chasidic poetry of Velvel
Zbarzher. ...probably it is our Purimshpil
compilation was not released earlier as in the
sixties and seventies of the previous century, where
the Broder Singer artistry had reached his highest
penetration among the masses."
"SIMCHE PLACHTE"
PRODUCTION IN WARSAW'S "YUNG THEATRE"
The success of "Simche
Plachte" had led the author to publish in 1882 (Trm"b)
"Der gliklekher nor oder der khaver fun R' Simche
Plachte."
The play had made an
extraordinary impression and played for a very long
time. The manager of the American Yiddish Actors'
Union, Reuben Guskin, who then was a guest in
Warsaw, brought the comedy to America, where it was
staged on 23 December 1936 by Maurice Schwartz in
his "Yiddish Art Theatre," under the name:
THE WATER CARRIER
A folks-comedy in 2 acts
by Jacob Prager
Music by A. Olshanetsky
with the following
personnel in the main roles:
Simche
Plachte, the Water Carrier
Beile
R' Yosele Parness
Malke'le
Der Litvak
Tsipe
Der Prits |
|
Maurice
Schwartz
Anna Teitelbaum
A. Tenenholtz
Anna Appel
Michael Rosenberg
Berta Gerstin
Moshe Silberkasten |
The play was later staged across
the American province, and during the guest
appearance of Maurice Schwartz in Paris and
London (with Genia Shlitt in the role of "Tsipe.")
MAURICE
SCHWARTZ'S PRODUCTION OF "THE WATER CARRIER" IN NEW
YORK'S "YIDDISH ART THEATRE"
On 25 November 1938 the
"Folks- and Yung-teater", under the leadership of
Clara Segalowitz, staged the play in Lodz's
Filharmonia Theatre, P.'s:
MEYLEKH FREYLEKH
A folks play in 3 acts with a prologue,
dramatized and stage directed by Michael Weichert
music by Israel Shayewitz, settings and costumes by
St. Robzhinski
choreography by Zina Krush, with the following
personnel:
Kopl
Tselokhes
R' Shayele Kronengold
Renishi
Di Mome Pesele
Tsirele
Avrahamele Shuster
Mendl Shneider
Yompe Koval
Zimele Koimenkerer
Yantl Klezmer
Kheykl mitn Peykl |
|
Vladek
(Willy) Godik
Moshe Lipman
Esther Goldenberg
Natalia Lipman
Zipora Feinzilber
Daniel Shapiro
Abraham Kurtz
Simcha Rozen
Shlomo Ribak
Shlomo Kon
Moshe Garbarz |
The play was staged in
1939 in Warsaw, in the "Teatr Rozmaitości."
P. may have, during the
Second World War, remained in the Warsaw Ghetto, and
his fate is unknown.
P.'S PUBLISHED PLAYS:
[1] Jacob Prager
Der nisoyen
A dramatic story in three acts
Publisher "Culture League," Warsaw 1925 [289 pp.,
16°]
[2] Shlomo Hamelekh
A dramatic poem in three acts, ten scenes
by Jacob Prager
Publisher "Turem," Warsaw 1932 [143 pp., 16°]
-
Z. Reyzen -- "Lexicon
of Yiddish Literature," Vol. II, pp. 970-971.
-
Noah Prilutski --
"Yidishe dialektulugishe furshungen," Warsaw,
1917, Vol. 1, p. 224.
-
Aaron Zeitlin --
Bay di vilner in lemberg, "Literarishe bleter,"
Warsaw, 34, 1927.
-
Dr. Jacob Shatzky
-- Di naye yidishe historishe drame, "Fraye
arbayater shtime," N. Y., 19 August 1927.
-
A. A. [Einhorn]
-- Vilner troupe, "Der nisoyen," "Haynt,"
Warsaw, 1 April 1928.
-
B. K--s [Karlinski]
-- Der nisoyen, "Der moment," Warsaw, 1 April
1928.
-
Dr. Tsvi Cohen --
A poylisher sholem aleichem, der mkhbr fun "r'
simche plachte," "Di tsukunft," N. Y., February
1930.
-
Z. Reyzen --
Yakov pregers "nisoyen" bay di "vilner," "Vilner
tog," 23 December 1930.
-
Israel Rabon -- A
naye premiere, "Lodzer Togblat," 16 June 1931.
-
Y. L. Wohlman --
Grusen fun eretz israel, "Der tog," N. Y., 10
March 1932.
-
Avraham Bley -- 3
hebrewishe forshtelungen in tel aviv, "Di idishe
velt," Philadelphia, 24 March 1932.
-
Y. Rapoport --
Der treyer riter fun reiner romantik, "Vokhnshrift,"
Warsaw, 33, 1932.
-
[Aaron Zeitlin]
-- A biblishe poeme, "Globus," Warsaw, 12, 1933.
-
Henekh Kon --
Vegn a nayer komedye, "Literarishe bleter,"
Warsaw, 33, 1933.
-
Nachman Mayzel --
Yakov pregers "simche plachte" in yung teater, "Literarishe
bleter," Warsaw, 1, 1936.
-
[--] -- vos
shreybt di prese vegn "simche plachte" in
yingteater, "Literarishe bleter," Warsaw, 13,
1936.
-
M. Kitay -- Arum
simche plachte, "Literarishe bleter," Warsaw,
19, 1936.
-
William Edlin --
A mesh vegn a vaser-treger vos verta a "guter
yid," "Der tog," N. Y., 26 December 1936.
-
Ab. Cahan -- Di
naye piese vos moris shvartz hot importirt fun
varshe, "Forverts," N. Y, 28 December 1936.
-
N. Buchwald -- A
sheiner spektakl in kunst-teater, "M"F," N. Y.,
1 January 1937.
-
Dr. A. Mukdoni --
Der vaser-treger, "Morning Journal," N. Y., 1
January 1937.
-
William Edlin --
Do un dort in der velt fun teater un muzik, "Der
tog," N. Y., 2 January 1937.
-
Ts. H. Rubinstein
-- Gut shabes, gut yor, "Der tog," N. Y., 2
January 1937.
-
Nachman Mayzel --
"R' Simche Plachte" un zayn mkhbr R; Yekl Lerer,
""Literarishe bleter," Warsaw, 5, 1937.
-
Maurice Schwartz
-- Moris shvarts vegen der prage fun di "gefeferte
frozen" in preger's "vaser gtreger," "Der
tog," N. Y., 18 January 1937.
-
B. Ts. Goldberg
-- In gang fun tog, "Der tog," N. Y., 25 January
1937.
-
Zalmen
Zylberzweig -- Di videroyflebung fun moris
shvarts kunst-teater in amerike, ""Literarishe
bleter," Warsaw, 7, 1937.
-
M. Katz -- Der
vaser-treger--a folks-komedie mit muzik, "Idishe
velt," Philadelphia, 18 March 1937.
-
Boris
Thomashefsky -- Zayn lebens-bukh, "Forverts," N.
Y., 24, 25 March 1937.
-
Herman Gold,
Slave Estrin Ben-Ami -- 2 artiklen vegn
vaser-treger, "Nyu yorker vokhnblat," 58, 1937.
-
Dr. Sh. Melamed
-- Moris shvarts zogt tehilim, 'Nyu yorker
vokhnblat," 59, 1937.
-
Y. L. Cohen -- "Yidisher
folklor," Vilne, 1938, p. 312.
-
D. Z. -- Yakov
pregers "meylekh freylekh" oyf der bine, "Literarishe
bleter," Warsaw, 44, 1938.
-
M. Kitay -- Yakov
pregers "meylekh freylekh" oyf der bine, "Literarishe
bleter," Warsaw, 50-52, 1938.
-
N. Frank --
Riziger erflog fun moris shvarts in "vasertreger,"
"Parizer haynt," 16 April 1939.
-
W. A. Darlington
-- Yiddish Players in Comedy, The Daily
Telegram, London, 19 May 1939.
-
J. G. B. -- A
Yiddish Musical Comedy with vigour, The Evening
News, London, 19 May 1939.
-
E. P. Montgomery
-- Yiddish Drama in vivid art, News Chronicle,
London, 19 May 1939.
-
V. Vevyorke --
Maurice Schwartz hot vider eyngenumen pariz, "Di
prese," Buenos Aires, 21 May 1939.
-
Jacob Mestel -- "Unzer
teater," New York 1942, pp. 28, 65.
|