Shifra Lerer (August , â€" March , ) was an Argentine-born American
Yiddish theater actress based in New York City. Lerer appeared
opposite every major Yiddish theater actor during her career, which
lasted years. She was also cast in film roles, including the Woody
Allen film, Deconstructing Harry.Her father, a manager at a soap
factory, had immigrated to Argentina from the Russian Empire to escape
anti-Semitism and poverty through the sponsorship of philanthropist
and banker, Maurice de Hirsch. Lerer was born in the Santa Catalina
colony in Argentina on August , . Lerer was discovered in Buenos Aires
by Yiddish theater legend, producer and actor Boris Thomashefsky, who
was starring in the area, when she was just five or eight years old,
at the recommendation of her sister (the actress Miryam Lerer). At ten
she was participating in Yakov Botashanski's productions in a theater
circle. When she was older, she studied at a Spanish-language drama
school and performed for three years on the Argentinian stage. She
then passed the examinations for the actors' union and became a
member, playing with the star Miryam Karalova-Kambarov, then Moyshe
Oysher and Florence Weiss, finally playing in serious drama roles with
Zygmunt Turkow in Urteyl, Hirsh Lekert, Ivan Kruger and Di glokn-tsier
fun Notr-dam (The Bell-ringer (Hunchback) of Notre Dame).She played
with Yakov Ben-Ami and Bertha Kalich in Wolf's Profesor Malok,
Strindberg's Der Foter, and Leyvick's Der poet is blind gevorn (The
poet became blind), with Samuel (Hymie) Goldenberg in Kalmanovich's
Hayntike kinder (Kids these days) and with Maurice Schwartz in
Singer's Moyshe Kalb.In she was invited by Samuel Goldberg to perform
at the Parkway Theater in Brooklyn (owned by Hymie Jacobson and his
brother Irving). Her first performance was in Fun Niu York keyn
Berlin; she then toured concertizing at places like the Arbeter Ring,
the National Yiddish Workers Union, and Camp Boyberik. In she went
back to Argentina where she worked with Ben-Zion Witler at the Mitre
theater and thereafter toured and performed with him (she married
Witler in - he died from a brain tumor in .). She joined the actors'
union in and played in Got, mentsh un tayvl with Mikhal Mikhalesko
and Gustav Berger. In she participated in Herman Yablokoff's
production of Benyomin Ressler's Onkl Sem in yisroel (Uncle Sam in
Israel) in the Public Theater in New York.
Yiddish theater actress based in New York City. Lerer appeared
opposite every major Yiddish theater actor during her career, which
lasted years. She was also cast in film roles, including the Woody
Allen film, Deconstructing Harry.Her father, a manager at a soap
factory, had immigrated to Argentina from the Russian Empire to escape
anti-Semitism and poverty through the sponsorship of philanthropist
and banker, Maurice de Hirsch. Lerer was born in the Santa Catalina
colony in Argentina on August , . Lerer was discovered in Buenos Aires
by Yiddish theater legend, producer and actor Boris Thomashefsky, who
was starring in the area, when she was just five or eight years old,
at the recommendation of her sister (the actress Miryam Lerer). At ten
she was participating in Yakov Botashanski's productions in a theater
circle. When she was older, she studied at a Spanish-language drama
school and performed for three years on the Argentinian stage. She
then passed the examinations for the actors' union and became a
member, playing with the star Miryam Karalova-Kambarov, then Moyshe
Oysher and Florence Weiss, finally playing in serious drama roles with
Zygmunt Turkow in Urteyl, Hirsh Lekert, Ivan Kruger and Di glokn-tsier
fun Notr-dam (The Bell-ringer (Hunchback) of Notre Dame).She played
with Yakov Ben-Ami and Bertha Kalich in Wolf's Profesor Malok,
Strindberg's Der Foter, and Leyvick's Der poet is blind gevorn (The
poet became blind), with Samuel (Hymie) Goldenberg in Kalmanovich's
Hayntike kinder (Kids these days) and with Maurice Schwartz in
Singer's Moyshe Kalb.In she was invited by Samuel Goldberg to perform
at the Parkway Theater in Brooklyn (owned by Hymie Jacobson and his
brother Irving). Her first performance was in Fun Niu York keyn
Berlin; she then toured concertizing at places like the Arbeter Ring,
the National Yiddish Workers Union, and Camp Boyberik. In she went
back to Argentina where she worked with Ben-Zion Witler at the Mitre
theater and thereafter toured and performed with him (she married
Witler in - he died from a brain tumor in .). She joined the actors'
union in and played in Got, mentsh un tayvl with Mikhal Mikhalesko
and Gustav Berger. In she participated in Herman Yablokoff's
production of Benyomin Ressler's Onkl Sem in yisroel (Uncle Sam in
Israel) in the Public Theater in New York.
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