KALISH

Kalish: translation

(or Kalich),Bertha

(1874-1939)

Born in Galicia in the Austro-Hungarian Empire, Bertha Kalish studied at the Lemberg Conservatory before acting in Polish opera andYiddish theatre, where she achieved success before moving on to the Bucharest National Theatre. Anti-Semitism forced her immigration to America with her husband and children in 1896. Kalish became one of the leading figures in New York's burgeoning Yiddish theatre community, with her beauty, lyrical voice, and grace enhancing performances in a range of important modern works and new Yiddish plays. She was particularly well-received inAvromGoldfadn'sShulamisandJacobGordin'sSapphoandThe Kreutzer Sonata, as well as Yiddish-language versions ofA Doll's HouseandMadame Sans-Gêne, among others. Beginning in 1905, producerHarrison Grey Fiskepresented Kalish in English-language productions ofFedora(1905),Monna Vanna(1905),Sappho and Phaon(1907),Marta of the Lowlands(1908),The Unbroken Road(1909),The Witch(1910), andThe Riddle:Woman(1918). Failing eyesight curtailed her career aroundWorldWar I, although she occasionally returned to the stage in Yiddish revivals of her earlier successes.