The Judeo-Tat Theatre in
Derbent
Derbent (russian: Дербе́нт; lez, Кьвевар, Цал; az, Дәрбәнд, italic=no, Dərbənd; av, Дербенд; fa, دربند), formerly romanized as Derbend, is a city in Dagestan, Russia, located on the Caspian Sea. It i ...
, Dagestan, Russia specializes in staging plays with themes related to the lives of
Mountain Jews
Mountain Jews or Caucasus Jews also known as Juhuro, Juvuro, Juhuri, Juwuri, Juhurim, Kavkazi Jews or Gorsky Jews ( he, יהודי קווקז ''Yehudey Kavkaz'' or ''Yehudey he-Harim''; russian: Горские евреи, translit=Gorskie Yevrei ...
, which are created mainly by Mountain Jews. The plays are performed in the
Judeo-Tat language (Juhuri).
The founding of the theatre
Traditionally, the Judeo-Tat Theatre created and performed works in
Derbent
Derbent (russian: Дербе́нт; lez, Кьвевар, Цал; az, Дәрбәнд, italic=no, Dərbənd; av, Дербенд; fa, دربند), formerly romanized as Derbend, is a city in Dagestan, Russia, located on the Caspian Sea. It i ...
, since that is where most of the Mountain Jews lived. The first theatrical event by Mountain Jews took place in December 1903,
[Book ( ru:«Татская литература») – "Judeo-Tat literature" by Musakhanova G. B., Makhachkala, Russia. 1993.] when Asaf Agarunov, a teacher and a
Zionist
Zionism ( he, צִיּוֹנוּת ''Tsiyyonut'' after '' Zion'') is a nationalist movement that espouses the establishment of, and support for a homeland for the Jewish people centered in the area roughly corresponding to what is known in Je ...
, staged a story by Naum Shoykovich, translated from
Hebrew
Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...
, "The Burn for Burn," and staged it in honor of schoolteacher Nagdimuna ben Simona’s (Shimunov) wedding.
In 1918, a drama studio was opened in Derbent, headed by
Rabbi
A rabbi () is a spiritual leader or religious teacher in Judaism. One becomes a rabbi by being ordained by another rabbi – known as ''semikha'' – following a course of study of Jewish history and texts such as the Talmud. The basic form of ...
Yashaiyo Rabinovich.
Since 1924, the Mountain Jewish collective began to be called the cultural and educational circle of Mountain Jewish youth, abbreviated as ''(russian: Кружок ГЕМ)'' – "GEM Circle." It was headed by
Yuno Semyonov (1899–1961) and Manashir Shalumov.
[P. R. Agarunov. ( ru:«Театральное искусство горских евреев») - "Theatrical art of Mountain Jews". Magazine ( ru:«Миньян») - "Minyan", №5.]
In 1924, Yuno Semyonov put on two plays in the Derbent Mountain Jews circle – "Two leather sellers" and "A cunning matchmaker."
In 1935, the first
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...
theatre opened in Derbent, which included three troupes –
Russian
Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including:
*Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries
*Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and peo ...
, Mountain Jews and
Turk. It was based on drama circles, which were led by Manashir and Khanum Shalumov. Initially, in the circle, men played the female roles. Later, women began to take part in the theatre.
A period of prosperity began: many performances were staged. In 1939, the Judeo-Tat theatre was the winner of the festival of theatres in
Dagestan. The music for the play was written by the theater’s composer and musical director, Jumshud (Shumshun) Shevanyevich Ashurov (1913–1980), "Honored Artist of Dagestan." At the beginning of 1941, the theatre held rehearsals of the play "The Rift" by
Boris Lavrenyov
Boris Andreyevich Lavrenyov (russian: Борис Андреевич Лавренёв) (real name Sergeyev), (July 16 Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates">O.S._July_4.html" ;"title="Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates.html" ;"title="nowiki/>O.S._July_4">Old_S ...
and "Aydin" by
Jafar Jabbarly
Jafar Gafar oglu Jabbarly, ( az, Cəfər Qafar oğlu Cabbarlı, 20 March 1899, Khizi – 31 December 1934, Baku) was an Azerbaijani playwright, poet, director and screenwriter.
Life
After his father's death in 1902, Jabbarli's mother moved to ...
.
The drama group in Gyrmyzy Gasaba in Azerbaijan
From 1920 to 1932, the Judeo-Tat drama group was active in the Mountain Jews settlement in
Gyrmyzy Gasaba in
Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan (, ; az, Azərbaycan ), officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, , also sometimes officially called the Azerbaijan Republic is a transcontinental country located at the boundary of Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is a part of t ...
.
Theatre during World War II
During
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
, most of the actors were drafted into the army. Many theatre actors died in the war.
[Book ( ru:«Самородки Дагестана») – "Gifted of Dagestan" by Mikhailova I. X., Makhachkala, Russia. 2014.]
In 1943, the theatre resumed its work, and in 1948 it was closed. The official reason was its unprofitability.
Post-war period
On April 28, 1959, the board of the
Stalin
Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Ioseb Besarionis dze Jughashvili; – 5 March 1953) was a Georgian revolutionary and Soviet political leader who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until his death in 1953. He held power as General Secretar ...
collective farm appealed to the city’s
party committee, requesting to create a Mountain Jews people's theatre as an amateur art circle.
Pyotr Rafailovich Agarunov (1930–2006), "Excellent worker of the
USSR
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nationa ...
State Television and Radio Broadcasting," was invited from
Baku to organize the further work of the theatre. Musaib Mammadalievich Jum Jum (1905–1974) who was of
Azerbaijani descent, was invited to be theater director, and was called the "People's Artist of the
DASSR." He was very familiar with the language and culture of the Mountain Jews. The composer Jumshud (Shumshun) Shevanyevich Ashurov was appointed music director.
Mikhail Gavrilov (1926–2014), "Honored Worker of Culture of the Republic of Dagestan," was the administrator.
In the 1960s, the theatre resumed its activities and experienced its second heyday. The actress, the audience's favorite, Akhso Ilyaguevna Shalumova (1909-1985), "Honored Artist of the
Dagestan ASSR
The Dagestan Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic av, Дагъистаналъул Автономияб Советияб Социалистияб Жумгьурият az, Дағыстан Мухтар Совет Сосиалист Республи ...
" returned to the theatre.
She played the role of ''(
Juhuri
Judeo-Tat or Juhuri (''cuhuri'', , ) is the traditional language of the Mountain Jews of the eastern Caucasus Mountains, especially Azerbaijan and Dagestan, now mainly spoken in Israel.
The language is a dialect of Persian which belongs to the ...
:Шими Дербенди)'' – Shimi Derbendi's wife – ''Shahnugor'', based on the stories of writer
Hizgil Avshalumov.
In the 1970s, the People's Judeo-Tat Theatre was organized. For many years, its director was
Abram Avdalimov (1929-2004), "Honored Cultural Worker of the
Dagestan ASSR
The Dagestan Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic av, Дагъистаналъул Автономияб Советияб Социалистияб Жумгьурият az, Дағыстан Мухтар Совет Сосиалист Республи ...
," singer, actor and playwright. His successor was
Roman Izyaev
Roman Savievich Izyaev (russian: Роман Савиевич Изъяев; he, ;רומן איזאייב January 29, 1940 - April 29, 2018) was a Soviet, Russian and Israeli stage actor, artistic director, screenwriter and scenic designer of the Ju ...
(1940–2018), who was awarded the
Order of the Badge of Honour
The Order of the Badge of Honour (russian: орден «Знак Почёта», orden "Znak Pochyota") was a civilian award of the Soviet Union.
It was established on 25 November 1935, and was conferred on citizens of the USSR for outstanding ...
for his meritorious service.
In the 1990s, the Judeo-Tat Theatre experienced another crisis: it rarely held performances and did not have any premieres. Only in 2000, when it became a municipal theater, was it able to resume its activity. From 2000 to 2002, the theatre was headed by actor and musician Raziil Semenovich Ilyaguev (1945–2016), "Honored Worker of Culture of the Republic of Dagestan." For the next two years the theatre was headed by Alesya Isakova.
In 2004, Lev Yakovlevich Manakhimov (1950–2021), "Honored Artist of the Republic of Dagestan," became the artistic director of the theatre. After the death of Manakhimov, Boris Yudaev became the head of the theatre.
For a long period in the life of the Judeo-Tat theatre, many actors have performed on its stage, such as Bikel Peisakhovna Matatova (1928–2013), "Honored Workers of Culture of the Dagestan ASSR," Avshalum Yakubovich Nakhshunov (''Shori-Artist'') (1925–1997), "People’s Artist of the Republic of Dagestan," Mozol Aleksandrovna Izrailova, "Honored Worker of Culture of the Republic of Dagestan," Anatoly Yusupov, Raya Novakhova,
Israel Tsvaygenbaum, Eva Shalver – Abramova and many others.
The founding of a theatre in Israel
In 2001, the artistic director, actor, screenwriter and decorator
Roman Izyaev
Roman Savievich Izyaev (russian: Роман Савиевич Изъяев; he, ;רומן איזאייב January 29, 1940 - April 29, 2018) was a Soviet, Russian and Israeli stage actor, artistic director, screenwriter and scenic designer of the Ju ...
founded the Mountain Jews' theater "Rambam" in the Israeli city of
Hadera
Hadera ( he, חֲדֵרָה ) is a city located in the Haifa District of Israel, in the northern Sharon region, approximately 45 kilometers (28 miles) from the major cities of Tel Aviv and Haifa. The city is located along 7 km (5&nb ...
.
[Theatre "Rambam" performed in front of residents of Pardes Hanna]
/ref> The collective has toured not only cities where Mountain Jews live in Israel, but also Canada, the United States, Azerbaijan and Moscow
Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 millio ...
, Russia.
After the death of Roman Savievich Izyaev in 2018, Eva Shalver - Abramova became the chief director of the theater "Rambam.”
References
See also
The Judeo-Tat Theatre of Derbent staged a play about the "dashing 90s"
Mezuzah was installed in the premises of the Judeo-Tat theatre in Hadera
The world's only Judeo-Tat theatre from Israel performed for the first time in Russia
Mountain Jews take the stage
Judeo-Tat (Mountain Jewish) Theatre
The world's only Judeo-Tat theatre will perform in Moscow for the first time
{{DEFAULTSORT:Judeo-Tat theatre
Theatres in Russia
Theatres in Israel
Culture of Dagestan