A Tale of Two Museums
Ester Rachel Kaminska Theater Museum Collection

At Night at the Old Marketplace

photo Bay nakht  Box93182.jpg
Bay nakht program Box41.jpg

Title

At Night at the Old Marketplace

Description

Although written before World War I, Y.L. Peretz's 
At Night in the Old Marketplace rose to become a symbol of the creative ambition of interwar Yiddish theater directors. Adhering closely to the form and even the content of Staniślav Wyśpianski's The Wedding (1901), itself a defining work of Poiish drama, At Night in the Old Marketplace calls for a cast of over 100 people and relates a dreamscape of shtetl characters where the dead mingle with the living. The play was not mounted during Peretz's lifetime due to both political obstacles and lack of a sufficiently developed Yiddish-language theater company. With sufficient talent and resources in place, directors after revived it several times after 1919. A work that spoke to a symbiotic relationship between Yiddish and Polish culture, as well as the avant-garde aspirations of the Yiddish theater, At Night in the Old Marketplace reveals how important Peretz was in laying the groundwork for Yiddish theater during this period. 

This theater program (undated) documents a performance of At Night that was directed by Dovid Herman, music by Joseph Kaminska (the son of Esther-Rokhl Kaminska); set design by Władysław Zew Wajntraub (Chaim Wolf Wajntrojb) c.a. 1891-1943) and choreography by Leah Rotboym, the sister of the director Jakub Rotboym.

Source

RG8, Box 93182

Publisher

YIVO Institute for Jewish Research

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

“At Night at the Old Marketplace ,” YIVO Online Exhibitions, accessed March 28, 2024, https://ataleoftwomuseums.yivo.org/items/show/2128.
Submit a transcription, translation or additional information on the song or the performer