Dinah Shtettin
Encyclopedia
Dinah Shtettin was a prominent English
-born Yiddish theater actress. She was the second wife of Jacob Adler
, with whom she had a daughter, Celia
; they divorced, and she married Siegmund Feinman. Contrary to the custom of the time, she and Adler remained friends even after their divorce.
The daughter of Polish
Jews, Shtettin had a strict Orthodox Jewish upbringing in London
. She began her theatrical career in the chorus of Israel Grodner
's London troupe in the mid-1880s, eventually getting small parts, and joining Adler's troupe when the Grodners went to Paris
. Adler, then a widower, quickly took a liking to her. At this time, he was already involved with Jenny ("Jennya") Kaiser, whom he had become romantically involved with while his first wife, Sonya
, was still alive, and by whom he had had a son.
Dinah Shtettin's father
approved neither of theater nor of Adler, but did little to restrict his daughter's wishes. He stated, "Let it be a divorce tomorrow, but marriage it must be!" They were married in 1887, and he left with the troupe to travel to the United States
. After a seven month return to London, he once again journeyed to New York in 1889, and was shortly followed by Dinah, who divorced her husband when he eloped with Sara Heine two years later in 1891.
Her New York
debut was in the role of Fanya, the villain's daughter, in Jacob Gordin's Siberia (1892). Commercially unsuccessful at the time, this first play of Gordin's is now considered a landmark in the evolution of Yiddish Theater.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
-born Yiddish theater actress. She was the second wife of Jacob Adler
Jacob Pavlovich Adler
Jacob Pavlovich Adler , born Yankev P. Adler, was a Jewish actor and star of Yiddish theater, first in Odessa, and later in London and New York City....
, with whom she had a daughter, Celia
Celia Adler
Celia Feinman Adler was an American Jewish actress, known as the "First Lady of the Yiddish Theatre"....
; they divorced, and she married Siegmund Feinman. Contrary to the custom of the time, she and Adler remained friends even after their divorce.
The daughter of Polish
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
Jews, Shtettin had a strict Orthodox Jewish upbringing in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. She began her theatrical career in the chorus of Israel Grodner
Israel Grodner
Israel Grodner was one of the founding performers in Yiddish theater. A Lithuanian Jew who moved at the age of 16 to Berdichev, Ukraine, Russian Empire, the Broder singer and actor was in Iaşi, Romania in 1876 when Abraham Goldfaden recruited him as the first actor for what became the first...
's London troupe in the mid-1880s, eventually getting small parts, and joining Adler's troupe when the Grodners went to Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
. Adler, then a widower, quickly took a liking to her. At this time, he was already involved with Jenny ("Jennya") Kaiser, whom he had become romantically involved with while his first wife, Sonya
Sonya Adler
Sonya Adler , born Sonya Oberlander, early stage name Sonya Michelson, was one of the first women to perform in Yiddish theater in Imperial Russia...
, was still alive, and by whom he had had a son.
Dinah Shtettin's father
Father
A father, Pop, Dad, or Papa, is defined as a male parent of any type of offspring. The adjective "paternal" refers to father, parallel to "maternal" for mother...
approved neither of theater nor of Adler, but did little to restrict his daughter's wishes. He stated, "Let it be a divorce tomorrow, but marriage it must be!" They were married in 1887, and he left with the troupe to travel to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. After a seven month return to London, he once again journeyed to New York in 1889, and was shortly followed by Dinah, who divorced her husband when he eloped with Sara Heine two years later in 1891.
Her New York
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
debut was in the role of Fanya, the villain's daughter, in Jacob Gordin's Siberia (1892). Commercially unsuccessful at the time, this first play of Gordin's is now considered a landmark in the evolution of Yiddish Theater.