Dos tsente gebot

Prologue. Ahitophel [an angel, the yetser hore, lit. evil impulse], accompanied by devils, appears and boasts of his powers in leading men astray. The yetser tov [another angel, lit. good impulse], accompanied by angels, appears and tells of his efforts to make men walk in the paths of righteousness. Ahitophel mocks him and declares he is about to corrupt Peretz, a wealthy and pious Hasid of Nemirov, by causing him to fall in love with another man’s wife. The yetser tov dares him to do it and vows that he will frustrate the evil designs of the Tempter.

Act I. Sabbath Eve. Peretz returns home from the synagogue accompanied by a stranger whom, in accordance with the Jewish custom, he has invited to be his guest for the Sabbath–and who, be it added, is none other than the yetser tov in disguise. The two are welcomed by Fruma, Peretz’s good-looking and kindly but forbiddingly pious wife, whose kisses go to the prayerbook rather than her husband. They sit down for the Sabbath meal, and the rich dishes cause the guest to fall asleep in his chair at the very moment when the house is surrounded by Ahitophel and his minions. Fruma retires to her chamber; the guest is still sleeping in his his seat, and Peretz, thus left alone, contrasts his dreary home life with the gay and luxurious one of Ludwig, his business associate in Berlin, and the all too pious Fruma with the ravishing and voluptuous Mathilda, Ludwig’s wife, with whom Peretz has been smitten ever since his recent visit to Berlin. He struggles against temptation, but in vain. While the yetser tov is nodding, Ahitophel carries off Peretz, knowing that he will thereby gain a twenty-four-hour start on the yetser tov, as all work is forbidden on the Sabbath. Peretz is brought to a haunted inn by the roadside, where Ahitophel reveals his true identity to Peretz, promises to give him the fair Mathilda and to make Fruma believe that her husband has been drowned. In exchange, Peretz is made to swear eternal allegiance to him. Thereupon he and Peretz speed to Berlin and, in the guise of Tyrolese singers, arrive at Ludwig’s palatial home at the very moment when a ball is in progress there. They find the host melancholy and distracted, for ever since his recent visit to Nemirov, Ludwig has been madly in love with Fruma, whose piety and modesty he found infinitely more alluring than the tempestuous affection of the voluptuous Mathilda. Ahitophel astonishes Ludwig by telling him the thoughts which he, Ludwig, has been harboring in secret, and promises to give him Fruma in exchange for his soul, a bargain Ludwig readily accepts. Thereupon Ahitophel causes the next-door house to catch on fire and leads Mathilda to believe that Ludwig has perished in the flames.

Act II. The grief-crazed Mathilda and her maid Clementine are walking in a cemetery, where Mathilda is looking for her husband’s grave, though the latter is supposed to have perished in the fire. Ahitophel, disguised as a witch godmother, lures Mathilda into a hut, tells her of Ludwig’s infidelity to her, and finally inveigles her into marrying Peretz. He likewise bamboozles Fruma, who has gone to the Holy Land to seek solace for her grief at the graves of Jewish saints, into a marriage with Ludwig. However, neither marriage is destined to be consummated. All of Peretz’s ludicrous attempts to acquire western European polish fail to win him Mathilda’s love; and though Ludwig dons a Hasid’s garb and tries to carry out faithfully orthodoxy’s innumerable observances, Fruma is too busy with good works and pious scroungers to give him the kind of attention he craves. In the end, Peretz, infuriated by Mathilda’s indifference, and constantly goaded by the taunts and jeers of his servant Friedel (who is none other than the yetser tov in disguise), kills Mathilda, whereupon he himself vanishes amid smoke and flames. And Ludwig, finding the immovably pious Fruma deaf to all his love pleas, decides to go back to Mathilda and vows that if he ever leaves her again, may the devil take him. At that very moment Ahitophel appears and carries him off to his realm. A few moments later Fruma, who has never ceased to mourn Peretz, drops dead.

Act III. In hell, Ahitophel’s domain. Devils haul in the souls of departed sinners in wheelbarrows. The minion who tends to hells vast furnace thanks Ahitophel for the latest haul of sinners, as business was getting rather slack of late. Various souls are held before Ahitophel for judgment, and the sentences he passes afford the author an opportunity for many a sly dig at the evils of our social system. Finally Peretz and Ludwig are brought in and learn with dismay that each was married to the other’s wife for three months. Both regret their folly, both declare that neither has had conjugal relations with the other’s wife, and both express the desire to return to their original spouses. Ahitophel realizes that he has been bested by the yetser tov, for though Peretz and Ludwig were ready to sin, their wives prevented them from doing so. In disgust he packs them off to Paradise, where their wives are. Arrived there, a reconciliation is soon brought about between Peretz and Fruma, and between Ludwig and Mathilda. By the yetser tov’s decree the two couples are sent back to earth to spend the rest of their allotted days there.

Synopsis adapted from Maximilian Hurwitz’s synopsis for the 1926-27 season of Maurice Schwartz’s Yiddish Art Theater by Sonia Gollance.

Article Author(s)

Sonia Gollance

Sonia Gollance is Lecturer (Assistant Professor) in Yiddish at University College London.

Grinbergs tekhter

Act I. Zalmon Greenberg is a prosperous butcher on the Lower East Side. His world consists of his unlettered, simple-minded, and devoted wife, Sarah; of his two children, Esther and Bessie, the former a shy, modest, dutiful homebody, the latter a jazz-baby and frequenter of cabarets and dancehalls; of his pious and learned uncle Aaron, and his shrewd, sharp-tongued, yet kindly aunt Hennie, whom he has brought over from Europe, given a home and set up in business in his own house; of his customers and neighbors and, finally, of his daughters’ lovers: Dave Levinson, who has been in love with Esther since childhood, to the great chagrin of his father, who keeps a dry-goods store across the street from the Greenbergs and ranks butchers rather low in the scale of social and matrimonial merit; and last, but not least, Bessie’s beau, Max Bernstein, a prize-fighter, who attributes his recent knockout at the hands of Kid Bushie to the fact that the trunks he wore for the fight did not have a Star of David sewn on them. Though somewhat Americanized, Zalmon retains the psychology and general views of the Old World. He refuses his daughters’ plea that the family join in the general exodus from the Lower East Side; and in order to silence their complaints, he takes advantage of their absence in the country, where they are spending their vacation, to beautify his house by having it painted and installing modern improvements and new furniture, including a radio, so as to surprise the girls upon their return. As the play opens, a painter is seen at work in the butcher-shop, while an expressman delivers new furniture. A letter arrives from Bessie in which she informs her parents that Esther has shed her customary shyness and modesty in the country and is carrying on “high and mighty” with a traveling salesman who is stopping at the same hotel; she even suggests that it would be advisable for her and Esther to return home at once. Bessie’s remarks fill Zalmon with indignation and attributes them to jealousy, but Sarah has some misgivings. At this point Aaron rushes in terror-stricken and reports that his bookstore is being raided by the police who are falsely charging him with being a bootlegger. While Zalmon and Aaron hasten to the latter’s store, Sarah asks Dave to come in. No sooner does he enter than Max Bernstein arrives. Sarah shows them a picture of her daughters that Bessie enclosed in her letter, and the two young men are discussing plans for spending the week-end with the girls, when the elder Levinson enters and summons his son back to his work at the dry-goods store. Left alone with Sarah, Max tells her that he is giving up pugilism and opening a poolroom. He has already invested a thousand dollars and needs a hundred dollars more. Sarah lends him a hundred and fifty, and he departs. Zalmon and Aaron return, the misunderstanding with the police having been satisfactorily cleared up, and the two go upstairs to try out Zalmon’s new radio, only to discover that a radio is not all it is cracked up to be. Max comes back to report that he has just signed a contract for a return match with Kid Bushie and so isn’t going into the poolroom business after all. He returns the money he borrowed from Sarah and declares his intention of going to Bessie in the country and establishing his training quarters there. No sooner does he leave than Bessie suddenly arrives–alone, Esther having eloped with the traveling salesman the day before.

Act II. Three weeks have passed and still no trace of Esther. From a conversation between Bessie and Max, we learn that the latter is through with prize-fights, Kid Bushie having knocked him out again, though this time he was careful to have a Star of David sewn on his fighting trunks. The two discuss plans for their forthcoming marriage and for settling in California, where Max is sure a fortune is awaiting him. He expresses surprise that so quiet and modest a girl as Esther should have yielded so soon to temptation. Bessie attributes her sister’s fall to the fact that she had never associated with men and so fallen an easy prey to the first one who whispered sweet lies into her ears. Aaron, Hennie and Sarah try to dissuade the two from getting married at this time, but they are adamant, and find an unexpected ally in Zalmon. The latter then sends for Dave and tells him the truth about Esther’s absence from him. Dave staggers out of the house, and Aaron and Hennie rush in to scold their nephew for what he has done. Presently a young woman enters and announces herself as Lena Becker, wife of Esther’s seducer. She relates the circumstances under which she found Esther, whom she absolves of all blame in the matter, and who, she says, bitterly repents her mistake and above all the wrong she has done to her by betraying his great trust in her. Mrs. Becker adds that she has brought Esther with her and left her at Aaron’s store. While Sarah and Hennie run to fetch her, Aaron pleads with Zalmon to be kind to his erring daughter, because a sinner who truly repents is, according to the Talmud, superior to a person who has never sinned. Esther is brought in and is greeted by her faltering father with: “How are you, Esther?”

Act III. Hennie remonstrates with Sarah for keeping the butcher-shop closed now that Esther is back home and Dave has given her an engagement ring. She threatens to take matters in her own hands and hire a butcher to run her nephew’s shop. Aaron comes in with the startling news that Zalmon has sold the house, and that he is now showing the premises to the new proprietor. Presently Zalmon and Mr. Lefkowitz, the new owner, enter and take an inventory of the contents of the house. Hennie shrewdly tries to frighten away Lefkowitz by telling him that Zalmon is insane; she also threatens to smack his face if he does not give up the idea of buying the house. Her brave threats are in vain; Zalmon insists on the sale. Esther and Dave return from a walk and learn of the sale of the house. Esther blames herself for her father’s action in thus uprooting his existence and undoing the work of a lifetime. Dave comforts her, vows his everlasting love for her, suggests an early marriage and urges her to talk the matter over with her father. Max and Bessie arrive and announce that they have just got married in court and that they are leaving forthwith for Atlantic City. When Esther pleads with Bessie not to go away like this and break their mother’s heart, Bessie, who has adopted a “holier-than-thou” attitude towards her unhappy sister, merely scoffs at her. Sarah is disconsolate, but Zalmon gives them his blessing. The latter tells his uncle why he has sold his house and given up his business. “A building,” he says, “holds fast as long as the foundation endures. Esther was the foundation that held me up.” Dave rushes in to tell them that his father has learned of his secret engagement to Esther. Presently the terrible Mr. Levinson himself comes in to voice his objection to the marriage of his only son to a butcher’s daughter; but Zalmon argues with him with such dignity, restraint, and sweet-reasonableness that he half wins him over to the match, and Dave and Esther prepare to leave at once for another city to get married there.

Adapted from Maximilian Hurwitz’s synopsis for the Yiddish Art Theater by Sonia Gollance

Article Author(s)

Sonia Gollance

Sonia Gollance is Lecturer (Assistant Professor) in Yiddish at University College London.

Bar Kokhba, der zun fun di shtern, oder, di letste teg fun yerusholayim

Prologue. Jews gather mournfully in a synagogue. Reb Elazar, an elderly scholar, reads aloud from a scroll and talks about on the Jews’ dissatisfaction with God. He concludes that they have only themselves to blame for their misfortunes, and must repent. But Bar Kokhba, a strapping 35-year-old, calls for action. Elazar warns against violence, while Bar Kokhba, reminding his audience of the biblical verse, “A star has come forth from Jacob,” swears them to loyalty.

Act I. In Elazar’s room, his daughter Dinah and other young women sing a lament. But left alone, she expresses hope. She sees her beloved Bar Kokhba as the Jews’ savior, while Elazar takes the opposite view. Enter Bar Kokhba, elated that he has gathered a large following. After he leaves, Pappus arrives: a lame, half-blind, wealthy jeweler, carrying diamonds in one hand and pearls in the other. When Dinah realizes that he is trying to buy her affection, she rebuffs him and leaves. He sings of revenge. Meanwhile, on Mount Moriah, Bar Kokhba is carried on a golden wagon to the High Priest, who anoints him as the Jews’ leader.

Act II. The home of Turnus Rufus, Roman governor of Jerusalem. He and his wife, Serafina, sit side by side on golden chairs. Pappus arrives with jewels, tells of an imminent Jewish uprising, and suggests a trap for Bar Kokhba. If they invite Elazar to the palace, he will surely bring Dinah, whom the Romans can hold hostage until Bar Kokhba comes for her. Elazar and Dinah arrive, and Rufus debates with the old man, suggesting that the Torah calls for the Jews to hate other peoples. Elazar insists that all he wants is peace, so Rufus sends him to bring back a sign of peace while the Romans hold Dinah as a pledge. Pappus, alone, gloats. He has already told Bar Kokhba what has happened. Rufus returns to his throne and learns of Bar Kokhba’s arrival. Bar Kokhba demands Dinah’s release. Rufus puts him in chains, but Bar Kokhba breaks them and runs out. Scene change: an amphitheatre, with Rufus and Serafina in attendance. He calls in Bar Kokhba, who tames a lion. He promises to kill Rufus, then hops on the lion and rides through the arena’s iron gate. An angel appears, holding a flaming sword.

Act III. In a darkened room, Dinah prays and mourns. Laundresses enter and set upon Dinah when they find her resting. Dinah appeals to their humanity: “I know some of you love me deep down. We’re from different religions, but from one Father…” After they leave, she prays some more, and then falls asleep. Enter Pappus, who goes to kiss her, but she suddenly awakens. He tells her that she will surely die unless she goes with him; when she spurns him, he angrily predicts that she will never see any of her loved ones again. He leaves, and Rufus enters, drunk. He tries to seduce Dinah; she takes advantage by having him hand over his armor and sword, and nearly kills him. Pappus shows Serafina in; she angrily sends her husband home, exchanges bitter words with Dinah, and leaves. Rufus brings the news that Bar Kokhba has surrounded the fortress. He offers Dinah the chance to save herself by having Bar Kokhba call off his forces; then, Rufus says, he’ll give the Jews whatever they want. He goes. Serafina returns and sings a duet with the defiant Dinah, then has soldiers take her away. Scene change to the Jewish camp outside the fortress. Bar Kokhba’s general, Azariah, reports that the troops are ready to attack. Bar Kokhba wants to see if Rufus will let Dinah go peacefully. A messenger brings an arrow from Pappus wrapped with a note reading just one word: “Hitboneynu” (consider us). Pappus tells Bar Kokhba of Rufus’s plan regarding Dinah, who appears atop the fortress and commands Bar Kokhba not to give in. She leaps from the fortress and dies; Bar Kokhba kneels over her body as Azariah and his troops storm the gates.

Act IV. A royal hall. Bar Kokhba tells Pappus that in spite of having driven the Romans from Jerusalem, he cannot be happy without Dinah. Pappus, pretending pity, tells Bar Kokhba that Elazar sold Dinah out to the Romans. Bar Kokhba summons the Sanhedrin to bring Elazar to judgment. The Sanhedrin enter with Elazar, whom Bar Kokhba accuses of selling out both his daughter and the Jews. Enter Azariah, who announces that the Romans have surrounded and burned Jerusalem. Bar Kokhba goes to gather his troops. Elazar calls him a false messiah, and insists on his innocence just before he dies. Scene change to the Beitar fortress. Pappus shows the Roman army the way. Bar Kokhba, disheveled and tired, sees the ghost of Elazar, who tells him that all is lost. We hear Roman trumpets as Bar Kokhba declares that he will take his own life. In the final tableau, Bar Kokhba stabs himself. Azariah stabs Pappus. Jews and Romans fight atop the walls. The fortress burns as we see a Roman soldier killing a child in its mother’s hands, another Roman killing an old man, a third stepping on a Jew as he runs him through with a spear. Fires burn as the curtain falls. 

Article Author(s)

Joel Berkowitz

Joel is Professor of English and Director of the Sam and Helen Stahl Center for Jewish Studies at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.