S.Y. An-ski writes (and re-writes) The Dybbuk

Title

S.Y. An-ski writes (and re-writes) The Dybbuk

Description

The Russian-Jewish writer, ethnographer, and political activist, Shloyme-Zanvl Rapoport (1863-1920), known by his pseudonym S. Y. An-ski, wrote and revised The Dybbuk over a number of years, beginning in 1911 until his death in 1920. In Three Literary Generations, the literary historian Sh. Tsitron recounts that An-ski first wrote the play in Russian and then in Yiddish. An-ski integrated ethnographic material he collected from his expeditions throughout the Pale. The basis of the synagogue scene in the first act, however, came to An-ski in 1914 during the humanitarian missions he conducted during World War I in destroyed Jewish communities throughout Galicia. He wrote the first act in Tarnow and the last two acts in Moscow.

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Citation

“S.Y. An-ski writes (and re-writes)The Dybbuk,” YIVO Online Exhibitions, accessed May 9, 2025, https://ataleoftwomuseums.yivo.org/items/show/2937.

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