THE
NATIONAL YIDDISH THEATRE FOLKSBIENE at the MUSEUM OF JEWISH HERITAGE
presented
THE
GOLDEN BRIDE
Music
by JOSEPH RUMSHINSKY
Lyrics
by LOUIS GILROD
Libretto
by FRIEDA FREIMAN
Co-Directors:
BRYNA WASSERMAN & MOTL DIDNER
Edmond
J. Safra Hall at Museum of Jewish Heritage
36 Battery Place, New York City 10280
36 Battery Place, New York City 10280
The Golden Bride was last staged on February 27,
1948 on New York's Lower East Side and has been restored through scholarly
research to produce the new musical score on which this production is based.
It's an operetta with a live orchestra and sung in Yiddish with supertitles in
both English and Russian. The theme is about Jewish immigrants already
established in America and those migrating from the Russian Empire and the rest
of Eastern Europe in the millions during the early to mid-twentieth century. It
did appear as an old-fashioned musical comedy with beautiful stage settings (Scenic Design by John
Dinning).
Goldele (Rachel Policar) abandoned by her
mother and father in Russia, brought up as an orphan in a shtetl, later learned
she inherited a fortune from her deceased father in America. She had already
fallen in love with Misha (Cameron Johnson) but out of folly demanded
that her many suitors find her mother and the one to find her mother would be
her groom. Much of the story was about dreaming of riches whether in Mother
Russia or America with a farcical twist performed by a large cast of talented
performing artists. The songs sung by Goldele and Misha were beautiful
accompanied by the fine orchestra, conducted by Zalmen Mlotek. There was
also a second pair of lovers to add a bit of frivolity to the piece.
Overall, I'd recommend going to the more stage
productions by the National Yiddish Theater Folksbiene at the Museum of Jewish
Heritage and also, take a tour of the museum to learn more about Jewish culture
and its history as a nation.
-
Laura Thompson -
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