Kiev marks Sholom Aleichem’s 150th birthday

December 16, 2008

KIEV, Ukraine (JTA) -- A Kiev museum kicked off national observances of the 150th anniversary of the birthday of Yiddish writer Sholom Aleichem.

An exhibition on the Jewish writer, who was born in Ukraine and spent much of his life there, opened last week at the Kiev Museum of Books. His birthday will be celebrated on the state level in Ukraine next year. Sholom Aleichem died in New York in 1916.

Organized under the aegis of the Jewish Council of Ukraine, the exhibition includes the writer’s works in different languages, manuscripts, translations, photos, portraits and documents.

In March, as part of the 150th celebrations, the Sholom Aleichem museum will be opened in Kiev, where the writer wrote his famous works "Tevye the Milkman," "Menachem-Mendl" and "Railway Stories." The museum, located not far from where Israeli Prime Minister Golda Meir was born, will be dedicated to the famous writer and to Yiddish culture, architecture and folklore.

According to Irina Klimova, the museum's newly appointed director, the museum will have original manuscripts, photographs, posters of performances of his plays and personal belongings.

"Tevye the Milkman" is enjoying its 19th season this year at the Ivan Franko National Academic Drama Theater in Kiev.

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