- HomeHome
- New York's Yiddish Theater New York's Yiddish Theater
- Poland's Yiddish TheaterPoland's Yiddish Theater
- The Dybbuk and the Theater Museum The Dybbuk and the Theater Museum
- Visionaries of Poland's Yiddish Avant-GardeVisionaries of Poland's Yiddish Avant-Garde
- Literary Theater Troupes/Miniature TheaterLiterary Theater Troupes/Miniature Theater
- Yiddish Plays on Poland's Avant-Garde StageYiddish Plays on Poland's Avant-Garde Stage
- Translations and AdaptationsTranslations and Adaptations
- THE ERK Yiddish Theater Museum ( Warsaw 1926)THE ERK Yiddish Theater Museum ( Warsaw 1926)
- TimelineTimeline
- AboutAbout
Nahum Lipovski (1874-1928)
Description
A poster of Nahum Lipovski surrounded by historical and literary characters who he played on stage, including Theodore Herzl (1860-1904), the Russian writer Alexander Ostrovsky (1823-1886), and the Italian opera composer Guiseppe Verdi (1813-1901).
Title
Nahum Lipovski (1874-1928)
Description
Nahum Lipovski was a celebrated theater impresario, master of multiple languages, and mathematical savant who energized the Yiddish theater scene during the many decades of his activity. He was born in Nesvizh, Russia to pious parents but was orphaned at the young age of nine. He learned in the Talmud Torah in Vilna, then in the yeshiva, and then taught himself worldly literature that lead him to study drama in Moscow.
In 1892, he fell in with Esther-Rachel Kaminska's wandering troupe and displayed his acting chops as well as a keen ability to manage the theater's business affairs. After completing his military service, he returned to acting. After 1900, Lipovski coordinated theatrical productions with Kaminska, as well as other directors such asRudolf Zaslavski (b. 1886).
In 1904, Lipovski moved to Germany. Here, he worked in German theater and took courses at the Freie Universitat, where he discovered his exceptional skills of memorization. While he put his memory to use with a number of projects, including writing a perpetual calendar, Lipovski returned to Vilna and founded what he considered his most important achievement: his Jewish People's Theater ("Yidishe Folks Teater"), which offered Yiddish theater at a price accessible to the working class. There, he directed shows while also offering a venue for other Yiddish theater troupes. It existed until the outbreak of World War I, at which point Yiddish was deemed by the Russian military "a language of the enemy." However, it resumed after the war and continued to operate after his death in December, 1928.
Source
RG8
Publisher
YIVO Institute for Jewish Research
Language
Polish
Type
Yiddish
Rights
YIVO owns the compilation of content that is posted on this website, which consists of text, images, and/or audio, and video. However, YIVO does not necessarily own each component of the compilation. Some content is in the public domain and some content is protected by third party rights. It is the user's obligation to determine and satisfy copyright or other use restrictions when publishing or otherwise distributing materials found in YIVO websites.
The materials on this web site may be used for personal, research and educational purposes only. Publication (including posting on the Internet and online exhibitions) or any other use without prior authorization is prohibited. Please visit https://www.yivo.org/Rights-Reproductions for more information about use of materials from this website.
YIVO has employed due diligence in seeking to identify copyright holders of the materials in this compilation. We invite any copyright owners who are not properly identified to contact us at yivomail@yivo.cjh.org.
Citation
“Nahum Lipovski (1874-1928),” YIVO Online Exhibitions, accessed March 23, 2023, https://ataleoftwomuseums.yivo.org/items/show/2265.