The Sorceress

Written in 1878, The Sorceress (Di Kishefmakherin) is one of the earliest works by Avrom Goldfaden, the acknowledged father of modern Yiddish theatre. It was brought to America in 1882 by a 14-year old Boris Thomashefsky, who would go on to become one of Yiddish theatre’s biggest stars.

Over the years, the role of the Sorceress, which was traditionally played by a man, became a dream role for some of the greatest leading men of their time. The tradition continues in this production, as Mikhl Yashinsky, from the Folksbiene’s smash-hit Fiddler on the Roof in Yiddish, assumes the title role. 

The Sorceress is fulfilling the Folksbiene’s dream of rescuing and restoring the essential music, lyrics, and scripts of the Yiddish theatre. The fully restored orchestrations are based, in part, on pre-Holocaust musical arrangements which were saved from destruction at the hands of the Nazis by the famed “Paper Brigade” of the YIVO in Vilna, who risked their lives to save thousands of unique documents and manuscripts.