KADIMAH YIDDISH THEATRE

“It sounds better in Yiddish!”

Well, it always did to me, especially when my Bobbe was busy cursing the pharmacist.

Curses aside, Yiddish continues to inspire us. We are a group of writers, performers and directors creating new and exciting theatre in Yiddish, galvanised by our ancestors and generations of Yiddish auteurs. We khap two feygele with one stone. On the one hand, we keep Yiddish language and culture relevant, and on the other hand, we use Yiddish as a new prism through which to view and approach making theatre.

We are a grassroots, professional community theatre born of the Melbourne Jewish community. The Jewish community in Melbourne is mainly descended of holocaust survivors, who spoke and loved Yiddish. Can you love a language? We think you can. Yiddish is considered a warm doona, a comfort, a welcoming home to those who speak it. Warmly referred to as mameloshn, “mother tongue”. We make exciting new theatre. Our shows are original, Australian and Yiddish.

So, who are we?

Evelyn Krape is Artistic Co-Director of Kadimah Yiddish Theatre. She is an Australian acting icon, with more than 30 years’ experience in theatre, film and television and has won numerous awards and honours. Her acting credits include her Green Room Award-winning performance in A Toast To Melba, her one‑woman show Female Parts and performances for Melbourne Theatre Company, Playbox, 11th Hour, Victoria Opera Company, the Malthouse and Shakespeare in the Park. Her television appearances include Australia You’re Standing In It, Flying Doctors, Blue Heelers and Laid. Film credits include Dimboola, The Sound of One Hand Clapping and the voice of “the Old Ewe” in the award-winning animated movies Babe 1 & 2.

In 2011 she toured internationally as part of the Yiddish group show Ek Velt. For KYT, she appeared in several cabarets, directed the 2019 productions Play Me A Poem at the National Theatre and the sold-out season of Yiddish Divas for the Melbourne Cabaret Festival at Chapel-Off-Chapel. She capped off 2019 with a Green Room Award Nomination for Best Artiste for her performance in KYT’s The Ghetto Cabaret (fortfivedownstairs) and shared the Best Actor Award at Tropfest. In 2021 she played the title role in King Lear for the Melbourne Shakespeare Company, narrated the new audiobook of Arnold Zable’s novel Scraps of Heaven and co-created its musical stage show. In 2022 she played Yeytser Ho’re / The Evil Inclination in the KYT’s critical acclaimed production of Yentl at the Arts Centre Melbourne.