The Moscow State Jewish (Yiddish) Theatre (Russian: Московский Государственный Еврейский Театр; Yiddish: Moskver melukhnisher yidisher teater), also known by its acronym GOSET (ГОСЕТ), was a Yiddish theatre company established in 1919 and shut down in 1948 by the Soviet authorities. During its time in operation, it served as a prominent expression of Jewish culture in Russia under Joseph Stalin. Under its founding artistic director, Alexander Granowsky, productions were heavily influenced by the avant-garde trends of Europe and many reflected an expressionistic style. Summertime tours to rural shtetls were extremely popular. At the end of a 1928 tour in Germany, Granowsky defected to the west, and Solomon Mikhoels became artistic director in his place. During Mikhoels' tenure the theatre branched out beyond classic Yiddish theatre productions to include works by Soviet Yiddish writers and William Shakespeare. The theatre continued to operate during World War II in Moscow and, after the evacuation of the city in 1941, in Tashkent. Mikhoels was murdered by the MVD in 1948 and his successor, Benjamin Zuskin, was arrested shortly after. In 1948 the Soviet authorities ordered the theatre to be shut down along with all other Yiddish theatre companies in the Soviet Union.
Founding and early years
It was conceived in 1916 and founded in 1919 by Alexander Granowsky as the Jewish Theatre Workshop in St. Petersburg. Early productions were offered at Maly Theatre, a small, 80-seat space. On April 1, 1920, after the capital was changed to Moscow, the company was moved at the request of Anatoly Lunacharsky and became the Moscow State Jewish Theatre.
thumb|Photograph of Marc Chagall taken in 1921, the same year he would design the sets for GOSET's first Moscow production, An Evening of Sholem Aleichem
Once in Moscow, the company began utilizing a house which was confiscated from a Jewish merchant by the name of L. I. Gurevich who had decided to flee the city around the time of the Russian Revolution. The house, which was built in 1902, consisted of three floors. The second floor featured a large living room that was converted into an auditorium consisting of 90 seats. The kitchen, which was directly adjacent to the new auditorium, was turned into a stage. The first and third floors were reserved for the actors and their families. The design of the foyer, as well as decorations, sets, and costumes for its first production were done by Chagall.
In the summertime, the company organized tours to the rural provinces where Yiddish theatre was actually more popular than in the larger cities. Shtetl residents looked forward to GOSET performances given near their small towns each year. Audience numbers averaged 1,250 per night on tour, as opposed to the nightly house average of less than 300 for performances in Moscow. One of the best documented tours visited Kiev, Gomel, Odessa, and Kharkov in the summer of 1924 and offered a variety of short sketches called A Carnival of Jewish Comedy in addition to full-length productions, such as The Sorceress, 200,000, and God of Vengeance.
At the end of GOSET's European tour that took place throughout the majority of 1928, Granowsky chose to remain in Germany, never returning to the Soviet Union. The decision came after years of conflict with Russian authorities over artistic and financial decisions that Granowsky had made for the company. Soon after the theatre's founding, GOSET had attracted Solomon Mikhoels, who eventually became the leading actor; after Granowsky defected to the West, Mikhoels took over as artistic director. Under Mikhoels' direction, the company began to produce works by contemporary Soviet Yiddish writers, such as Shmuel Halkin, Perets Markish, and David Bergelson. The international success of the production meant that Mikhoels had achieved one of the theatre company's founding goals: to make Yiddish a language of art for countries around the world.</small>
Closure
During The Moscow Trials of 1936 to 1938, Mikhoels' daughter confessed that the family lived in fear while witnessing the arrests of many friends and colleagues.
After Mikhoels' death, Benjamin Zuskin took became the company's artistic director. Months later, Zuskin was arrested and the theatre received orders to shut down along with all other Yiddish theatre companies in the Soviet Union. In addition, all members of the Jewish Anti-Fascist Committee (also formerly headed by Mikhoels) were arrested. Zuskin was one of at least thirteen prominent Soviet Yiddish artists executed on August 12, 1952 in the event known as "The Night of the Murdered Poets" ("Ночь казненных поэтов").