Ester Rachel Kamińska
Ester Rachel Kamińska | |
|---|---|
| אסתּר־רחל קאַמינסקאַ | |
 Photo of Ester Rokhl Kaminska from the book Klangen fun mayn lebn | |
| Born | Ester-Rokhl Halpern 10 March 1870 |
| Died | December 25, 1925 (aged 55) Warsaw |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Known for | Mother of Yiddish theatre |
Ester Rachel Kamińska (Yiddish: אסתּר־רחל קאַמינסקאַ; née Ester-Rokhl Halpern Porozów, 10 March 1870 – Warsaw, 25 December 1925) was a Polish actress of Jewish descent, known as the mother of Yiddish theatre.[1]
Early life
[edit]Ester-Rokhl Halpern was born on 10 March 1870 into a poor Jewish family in the shtetl of Porozów, near Grodno, which had a large Jewish community.[1] She had little schooling and moved to Warsaw to worked as a seamstress in early adulthood. This led to her becoming involved in theater. In 1893 she married Avrom-Yitskhok Kaminski, who worked as a gaitermaker but was an aspiring actor. She became known as Ester Rachel Kamińska.[2][1]
Career
[edit]Kaminska won fame as the star of a series of Yiddish theater companies managed by her husband, Avrom Yitshok Kamiński (Abraham Isaac Kamiński), touring in the cities and small towns of the Russian Empire from approximately 1893 to 1905. In Warsaw, in 1907 they together founded the Literary Troupe (Literarishe trupe), the first Yiddish theater company to dedicate itself to a 'literary' or 'artistic' repertoire.[2]
Family and legacy
[edit]She was the mother of three children. Regina Kaminska (1894–1913) became an actor but died young. Jozef Kaminski (1903–1972) became a violinist and composer. Ida Kamińska (1899–1980), the well known stage and film actress and director, who cofounded the Warsaw Yiddish Art Theater in the 1920s, and, in 1946, following the Second World War, performed in reestablished Yiddish theaters in Poland.[2] Today, the Jewish Theatre, Warsaw is named after the two actresses.[3]
References
[edit]- ^ a b c Sheila Segal. Women of Valor: Stories of Great Jewish Women Who Helped Shape the ... 1996 - Page 54 "Ida's mother, the legendary Esther Rachel Kaminska, was its shining star, enthralling audiences wherever the troupe ... After her father's death, in 1918, and her mother's death, in 1925, Ida took over the company and starred in most of its "
- ^ a b c "The YIVO Encyclopedia of Jews in Eastern Europe". encyclopedia.yivo.org. Archived from the original on 2025-02-19. Retrieved 2025-08-10.
- ^ Payson R. Stevens, Sol Steinmetz Meshuggenary: Celebrating the World of Yiddish 2002 - Page 204 "Star of the Yiddish Theater Ida Kaminska (1899-1980) descended from an illustrious family of Yiddish actors. The daughter of Abraham Isaac Kaminski and Esther Rachel Kaminska, pioneers of the Yiddish theater In Eastern Europe, Ida ..."
External links
[edit]- Ester Rachel Kamińska on IMDb
