Aaron Lebedeff Explained

Aaron Lebedeff (1873–1960)[1] was a Yiddish theatre star, born in Gomel, Belarus.

Life and career

In childhood he sang for the Hazzan, Borekh David. Having no interest in education, he was sent to learn a trade, but soon he ran away and began to play small roles in a Russian theaters in Bobruysk, Minsk and other towns. When the Russian troupe fell apart, he went back to Homel, taking part in amateur theatre and opening a dance club. When Leyzer Bernshtein's troupe arrived, he wheedled a place in it.[2]

He was officially a chorister, unofficially a roadie/stage hand (pekl-treger). He dressed the actors and was a prompter. He finally debuted in Der Pipkiner rav and became the character actor he would remain, playing in different wandering theatre troupes across Russia. He was hired in Warsaw and became popular there as Der Litvisher Komiker (The Litvak comic). In 1912–13, he played in Łódź with Zandberg, then back to Warsaw; and at the outbreak of World War I, he was pressed into the Russian army and sent to Harbin, Manchuria, (1916), where he spent his time of military service giving concerts for the officers.

After being demobilized, he worked in Avrom Fishzohn's troupe; but in order to support himself, he often had to sing in Russian or English for the American Red Cross.

He married Vera Lubow and later wandered toward Japan with his wife, presenting "International Concerts" (also in China). In 1920, he and his wife left for America and were hired for Boris Thomashevsky's National Theater production of Wolf Shumsky's Lyavke Molodyetz. He was such a hit that he became an overnight star of Yiddish theater in America.

Aaron died on November 8, 1960, and was buried next to his wife (who died two years prior) in the Yiddish Theatrical Alliance section of Mount Hebron Cemetery in Queens, NY.[3]

Lebedeff's musicals

Here are most of the shows he starred in during the 1920s:

In the 1930s:

In his traveling troupes, he also presented:

Lebedeff was a coupletist, composing dozens of comic songs for the Broadway Record Company; he recorded hundreds of sides including the famous Rumania, Rumania and Vot ken yu makh, s'iz amerike!.

External links

Notes and References

  1. http://aaronlebedeff.free.fr/anglais/codage/biographie.htm Aaron Lebedeff biography
  2. Zalmen Zylbercweig, Leksikon fun Yidishn teater, book two, 1133-1135
  3. http://www.mounthebroncemetery.com/interments/?page=3&fname=&lname=&yod=&society=&block=67&reference=1 Mount Hebron Cemetery

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