“This audio drama is filled with suspense, poetry, humor, mysticism and music,” said Rosovsky.
“The Dybbuk” was written in Yiddish by S. Ansky. Within eight years of its premiere in 1920, it captivated audiences in Vilna, Lithuania; Moscow, New York and San Francisco.
Today — after numerous television, theater, opera, and dance adaptations — the Hollywood Theater of the Ear’s production will be faithful to the form, tone and themes of the original classic, Rasovsky said.
The story draws on Eastern European folklore and Jewish mystical tradition to dramatize the story of a young bride possessed by the restless soul of her dead lover.
Khonnon, a penniless but devout Jewish student of the Kabbalah adores Leye.
Betrothed to each other at birth by their parents, the two are denied their fate when Leye’s father forgoes the marriage contract in offering Leye to a richer man.
Upon hearing the news, the heartbroken Khonnan, who is weak from prolonged prayer and fasting, dies instantly. Khonnon’s soul becomes a dybbuk, or demon, that enters Leye’s body in an attempt to gain possession of her love for eternity.
Her father, rich and religious, enlists a powerful Chassidic leader to exorcise the dybbuk so that Leye and her new wealthy fiancé can proceed with their marriage.