Tajemnice Estery Racheli Kamińskiej. Teatr żydowski w Warszawie i jego patronka.
Secrets of Ester Rachel Kamińska. The Jewish Theatre in Warsaw and its Patron

Summary/Abstract: The article is devoted to Ester Rachel Kamińska (1870-1925), a legendary Jewish actress, one of the first women on the Yiddish stage, since 1955 the patron of the Jewish theatre in Warsaw. It shows her Jewish and non-Jewish contacts and connections, striving to discover the secret of her uniqueness and uniqueness.At the beginning, anti-theatre prejudices in the Jewish community are discussed, which the first actors, especially women, had to face if they wanted to perform in public on stage and make a living from it. At the same time, Kamińska is included in the long tradition of performances in Yiddish in Warsaw, dating back to the years before A. Goldfaden established a professional secular Yiddish theatre, i.e. before 1876.Then, the question is answered why the artist hailing from Lithuanian Jews was chosen as the patron of the Jewish theatre in Warsaw. Based on her memoirs Derner un blumen, published in 2020 in Polish as Boso przez ciernie i kwiaty (Barefoot Through Thorns and Flowers), it is shown how the actress herself understood the identity of a "Litvak woman" and a "Varsovian woman". The relationship between the artist born in Porozów (today Belarus) and Warsaw is presented. The article discusses the youth of the future star. Her non-artistic gainful occupations were taken into account. Artistic initiations were not omitted: her first trips to the theatre, singing lessons, debut in operetta, participation in a drama performance. However, her achievements in the country (Russian Empire) and abroad (USA) are also taken into account, which consolidated her position and decided about her choice as the patron of the state Jewish theatre in Warsaw.In addition, the article explains why Ester Rachel Kamińska was called the "mother of Jewish theatre" (this term was placed on her matzevah) and what vision of the theatre was associated with it. At the same time, the distinction introduced in the gender theory (by A. Rich) between motherhood as an experience and motherhood as an institution is used. The achievements of the Kamiński family, which can be called a "theatrical dynasty", are taken into account. Women belonging to it inherited the roles of their eminent mothers, creating a performing tradition and continuing the concept of artistic Yiddish theatre focused on a demanding viewer and open to non-Jewish audiences.

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