S-Anski The Dybbuk

SANWAL

The Dybbuk by S-Anski (Shloyme Zaynvl Rapoport) Fri 30th Mar 1979, 15:05 on BBC Radio 4 FM Why, from highest height To deepest depth below, lias the soul fallen? Within itself, the f'all Contains the Resurrection Chassidism was the last great religious movement in Jewry of Eastern Europe, and was founded by the holy Rabbi Balshem in the 18th century. The action of The Dybbuk takes place in a small Chassidic village in Russia at the turn of the century. The study of the mystic Kabala was common to all the men of the community and life in Miropol hovers between two worlds - the 'real' world and that of supernatural forces. Leah is about to be married when she becomes possessed by a spirit - a dybbuk: who is this dybbuk? Why does he refuse to leave her? Can he be exorcised? Translaters: Henry G. Alsberg Winifred Katzin Composer: Stephen Deutsch Director: Liane Aukin Leah: Angela Pleasence Channon: Anton Lesser Rabbi Azrael: Cyril Shaps Sender: David de Keyser The Maggid: Michael Poole Frade: Margery Mason Reb Schmelke: Benny Lee Reb Dov: Martin Friend Reb Aaron: Harold Kasket Meyer: Leonard Fenton Hannah Esther: Hilda Kriseman Chennoch: David Graham Gittel: Julia Swift Rabbi Samson: John Gabriel Rabbi Mendel: Danny Schiller Menashe: Tim Stern Reb Nachman: David Graham Beggar woman: Tammy Ustinov S. An-ski’s play, The Dybbuk: Between Two Worlds, was first performed in 1920 and has since become the most celebrated work of Yiddish and Hebrew theater. Inspired by an ethnographic expedition An-ski embarked on before World War I, the play is set in a traditional shtetl and explores themes of love, death, ghosts, and possession. Originally written in Russian and produced and popularized in Yiddish, The Dybbuk occupies a space between traditional Jewish life and modernity, persuasively weaving Jewish folklore, legends, and customs into a modern secular work of high art.  The Dybbuk has been translated into and produced in a host of languages, and has been adapted for countless films, operas, and ballets. Having left an indelible imprint on the Jewish imagination, The Dybbuk is arguably one of the most influential works of the modern Jewish canon.  yivo

This recording is part of the Old Time Radio collection.