{"id":2251,"date":"2014-12-18T00:25:00","date_gmt":"2014-12-18T00:25:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/wyvern.ctl.columbia.edu\/?p=164"},"modified":"2021-07-16T12:46:57","modified_gmt":"2021-07-16T12:46:57","slug":"peoples-theater","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/jewishstudiescolumbia.com\/myny\/places\/peoples-theater\/","title":{"rendered":"The People’s Theater"},"content":{"rendered":"

By\u00a0Luan Thieu To<\/em><\/p>\n

The Yiddish Theater District was the center of New York City’s Yiddish life in the early 20th<\/sup> century. Located in the Lower East Side of Manhattan, the District was within the neighborhood of Jewish immigrants. The District was home of many plays, operas, shows and comedies. Lincoln Steffens, a renowned New York reporter in the early 20th<\/sup> century, even thought that the Yiddish theatre was livelier and more interesting than Broadway not only because of what was going on the stage but also the quality and passion of the audience responses.<\/span>1<\/sup><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

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Figure 1. Part of the Yiddish Theatre District in the early 20th<\/sup> century (2nd Ave.).<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Among the conglomerate of theaters in the District, the People\u2019s Theatre, which was located at 201 Bowery Street<\/a>, stood out because of its distinctive history of being owned by many praised actors throughout time. 201 Bowery Street\u00a0was originally occupied by the Hoym Theatre which was\u00a0named after its founder Otto von Hoym, the co-owner of the Stadttheater. Hoym was also\u00a0a well respected\u00a0German actor who dominated the American stage in the late 19th<\/sup> and early 20th<\/sup> century.<\/span>2<\/sup><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

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Figure 2. Otto von Hoym and the Stadttheater.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Tony Pastor, one of the fathers of the famous American vaudeville, purchased the theater in 1865 and renamed it to \u201cTony Pastor’s Opera House.\u201d Tony Pastor performed in this theatre until 1875 when he decided to move his company uptown.<\/span>3<\/sup><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

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Figure 3. Tony Pastor and Tony Pastor’s Opera House.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

In 1883, Henry Clay Miner, a wealthy theatrical impresario and U.S. Representative purchased the lot and built a 2,500-seat theatre. The new theatre took its final name as the \u201cPeople\u2019s Theatre.\u201d In the next decade, the People\u2019s Theatre continued housing minstrels, sideshows, and more serious theatrical works such as\u00a0Tom Sawyer<\/em>.\u00a0During this period, the People\u2019s Theatre also became the first playhouse in New York to replace gas with electric light.<\/span>4<\/sup><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

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Figure 4. Miner’s People’s Theatre.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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Figure 5. An excerpt from an interview with Miner on the use of the new electric light system.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

In 1899, Jacob Adler and Boris Thomashefsky\u00a0took over the People\u2019s Theatre.<\/span>5<\/sup><\/a><\/span> For the very first time, the People\u2019s Theatre became a full Yiddish playhouse. Also during this period, the People\u2019s Theatre truly experienced its golden time.<\/p>\n

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Figure 6. Boris Thomashefsky (left) and Jacob Adler.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Jacob Adler and Boris Thomashefsky were two of the most important stars of the Yiddish theater. They, together with other Yiddish actors and actresses, \u201cpublished their own magazine, The Yiddish Stage<\/em>, wrote columns in the popular Yiddish newspapers of the day, sponsored and encouraged new generations of young artists, brought uncountable numbers of Yiddish artists to the United States, tirelessly raised funds for progressive social causes and, through it all, were adventurous trend setters.\u201d<\/span>6<\/sup><\/a><\/span> Tilson Thomas, Thomashefsky\u2019s grandson, called his grandparents mega-stars, who \u201cfound themselves smack in the public eye. They were subject to adulation and relentless scrutiny. Legions of crazed fans were obsessed with every detail of their work and their lives.\u201d<\/span>7<\/sup><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

During this period the People\u2019s Theatre also witnessed one the most important turning points in Adler\u2019s career. In 1904, Jacob Adler staged a play by Leo Tolstoy, The Power of Darkness.\u00a0<\/em>The play was translated into Yiddish by Adler himself.<\/span>8<\/sup><\/a><\/span>\u00a0The production was one of the greatest ambitions that few actors during this time would dare to try to stage because of the grand and laborious work involved. Moreover, this production was also considered to be the first successful production of a Tolstoy play in the United States.<\/span>9<\/sup><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

Few other important plays which were written or translated into Yiddish were also staged in the People\u2019s\u00a0Theater\u00a0during this period. For instance, the\u00a0Theater\u00a0hosted William Shakespeare’s Hamlet<\/em>. Or in\u00a01902, the\u00a0Theater\u00a0staged a play named Der vilder\u00a0mensh<\/em>\u00a0or The Wild Man<\/em>\u00a0by Jacob Gordin.<\/p>\n

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Figure 7. William Shakespeare’s Hamlet<\/em>\u00a0(left) and The Wild Man<\/em>\u00a0by Jacob Gordin.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

During the turn of the century, the People\u2019s Theatre not only offered Yiddish plays but also hosted Italian theatrical works. For instance, in the early 1900s, Adler and Thomashefsky leased the space to Antorio Majori, an actor from the Italian theatre.<\/span>10<\/sup><\/a><\/span> The lease might have been motivated by both\u00a0economic and theatrical\u00a0reasons.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Figure 8. A performance by Antorio Majori at the People’s Theater.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The People\u2019s\u00a0Theater\u00a0lasted well into the late 1920s and\u00a0was slowly transformed into a Chinese playhouse in the 1930s.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Figure 9. A Chinese playhouse in the 1930s in the Lower East Side Theater District.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Nowadays, the People’s Theater\u00a0no longer exists.\u00a0The land is now occupied by a residential building.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Figure 10. The 201 Bowery lot in modern times.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Image Sources<\/strong><\/p>\n

Figure 1. http:\/\/cinematreasures.org\/theaters\/13582<\/a>. Accessed December 17, 2014.
\nFigure 2. http:\/\/digitalgallery.nypl.org\/nypldigital<\/a>. Accessed December 17, 2014.
\nFigure 3. http:\/\/xroads.virginia.edu\/~ma04\/wood\/ykid\/theater.htm<\/a>; http:\/\/www.ashlandelks.org\/html\/history\/corks\/folks\/tony_pastor.html<\/a>. Accessed December 17, 2014.
\nFigure 4. http:\/\/collections.mcny.org\/Collection\/Peoples-Theatre-and-City-Theatre-2F3XC5XUT3Q.html<\/a>. Accessed December 17, 2014.
\nFigure 5. https:\/\/books.google.com\/books?id=icQhAQAAMAAJ&pg=RA1-PA148&lpg=RA1PA148&dq=Miner+people%27s+theatre+first+electric+light&source=bl&ots=Vpsb2DLyKL&sig=t9PIdDpK2MW0qlC6xaZkFCYNVXs&hl=en&sa=X&ei=9_WPVOqFCYjCsASrl4HwBw&ved=0CCoQ6AEwAg#v=onepage&q=Miner%20people’s%20theatre%20first%20electric%20light&f=false<\/a>. Accessed December 17, 2014.
\nFigure 6. http:\/\/www.museumoffamilyhistory.com\/jqp-wheatley.htm<\/a>; http:\/\/eastlondonhistory.com\/2012\/09\/03\/jacob-adler-from-odessa-to-whitechapel-to-new-york\/<\/a>. Accessed December 17, 2014.
\nFigure 7. http:\/\/www.museumoffamilyhistory.com\/yt-placard-peoples-03.htm<\/a>. Accessed December 17, 2014.
\nFigure 8. http:\/\/luna.folger.edu\/luna\/servlet\/detail\/FOLGERCM1~6~6~370 653~ 131680:People%E2%80%99s-Theatre,-201-Bowery,-appos<\/a>. Accessed December 17, 2014.
\nFigure 9. http:\/\/books.google.com\/booksid=Vzv2DrzAL7UC&pg=PA94&lpg= PA94&dq=People%E2%80%99s+Theatre,+201+Bowery+yiddish&source=bl&ots=zEPZXFaefV&sig=1GIbfLxPPGnca9O32xKhYi31FI&hl=en&sa=X&ei=SJGVLTGAsuWNuq4gOAN&ved=0CEEQ6AEwCQ#v=onepage&q=People%E2%80%99s%20Theatre%2C%20201%20Bowery%20yiddish&f=false<\/a>. Accessed December 17, 2014.
\nFigure 10. https:\/\/www.google.com\/maps\/@40.7210233,-73.9937017,3a,90y ,94.68h,91.73t\/data=!3m4!1e1!3m2!1sTv_SfW0qNrkMEecGeGW6UQ!2e0!6m1!1e1<\/a>. Accessed December 17, 2014.<\/p>\n

Works Cited<\/strong><\/p>\n

Adler, Jacob. 1999.\u00a0A Life on the Stage: A Memoir<\/em>. Translated by Lulla Rosenfeld. New York: Knopf.<\/p>\n

Ferrara, Eric.\u00a0The Bowery: A History of Grit, Graft and Grandeur<\/em>. Charleston, SC: History, 2011.<\/p>\n

Koegel, John.\u00a0Music in German Immigrant Theater: New York City, 1840-1940<\/em>. Rochester, NY: U of Rochester, 2009.<\/p>\n

Sanders, Ronald.\u00a0The Lower East Side Jews: An Immigrant Generation<\/em>. Mineola, NY: Dover Publications, 1999.<\/p>\n

“The Thomashefskys Official Website – The Story.”<\/a>\u00a0The Thomashefskys Official Website – The Story<\/em>. Accessed July 16, 2021.<\/p>\n

Footnotes<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By\u00a0Luan Thieu To The Yiddish Theater District was the center of New York City’s Yiddish life in the early 20th century. Located in the Lower East Side of Manhattan, the District was within the neighborhood of Jewish immigrants. The District was home of many plays, operas, shows and comedies. Lincoln Steffens, a renowned New York […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":121,"featured_media":2574,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[18,160],"tags":[23,19],"class_list":["post-2251","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-places","category-theater","tag-lower-east-side","tag-theater"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p9teox-Aj","jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/jewishstudiescolumbia.com\/myny\/wp-content\/uploads\/untitled_7-1.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/jewishstudiescolumbia.com\/myny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2251","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/jewishstudiescolumbia.com\/myny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/jewishstudiescolumbia.com\/myny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jewishstudiescolumbia.com\/myny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/121"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jewishstudiescolumbia.com\/myny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2251"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/jewishstudiescolumbia.com\/myny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2251\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3257,"href":"https:\/\/jewishstudiescolumbia.com\/myny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2251\/revisions\/3257"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jewishstudiescolumbia.com\/myny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2574"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/jewishstudiescolumbia.com\/myny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2251"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jewishstudiescolumbia.com\/myny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2251"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jewishstudiescolumbia.com\/myny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2251"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}