Mirele Efros

SCREENINGS

Toronto Jewish Film Society (2009)
International Yiddish Festival, Amsterdam (1996)
Barbican Center for the Arts (1996)

RESTORED PRINT WITH COMPLETE NEW SUBTITLES

Mirele Efros, "the Jewish Queen Lear," was the masterpiece of Ukrainian-born Jacob Gordin, an enormously influential Yiddish playwright whose works sought to describe and promulgate the ethos of mentshlekhkeyt: the practice of honesty, decency, and devotion toward family and community. This sophisticated version of his stage classic faithfully recreates Jewish life in turn-of-the-century Grodno, Poland.

Berta Gersten gives a memorable performance as Mirele, a wealthy and pious widow whose devotion to her children extends to hand-picking a wife for her eldest son, gravely mistaking the young woman's character as giving and devout. The resulting conflict between the noble Jewish matriarch and her ungrateful, self-serving daughter-in-law provides both a cautionary tale and a lesson in the value of filial piety.

CRITICAL ACCLAIM

"Mirele Efros is likely the single most widely played piece in the Yiddish theatrical canon."
J. Hoberman, Bridge of Light: Yiddish Film Between Two Worlds

PURCHASE DVD

HOME USE ONLY
$36.00 plus shipping
Home Use Only DVD (Not for Classroom/Institutional Use)

Does not include Public Performance Rights
Home Use Policy (pdf)

INSTITUTIONAL USE

$72.00 plus shipping
Classroom/Institutional Use Only DVD

Does not include Public Performance Rights
Institutional Use Policy (pdf)

ALSO BASED ON A JACOB GORDON PLAY

The Yiddish King Lear

God Man and Devil

Without a Home

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The National Center For Jewish Film
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