189 Second Avenue, Harrison G. Wiseman, 1925-26 This part of Second Avenue was once referred to as the “Yiddish Rialto” for its many theaters catering to Jewish immigrants, for whom theater was a popular form of entertainment and an important cultural institution. The Moorish Revival structure was built for Brooklyn lawyer and civic leader Louis N. Jaffe to house the Yiddish Art Theater company, which ultimately only held four seasons here. Subsequently, it functioned as a Yiddish playhouse and theater until being converted to a cinema in 1988. The Former Yiddish Art Theater is a designated New York City Individual and Interior Landmark and listed on the State and National Register of Historic Places.

12th Street Cinema, ca. 1975. The theatre at 189 Second Avenue was the once a part of the Jewish Rialto that lined Second Avenue; more than two dozen theatres lined that street between Houston and 14th Street. Funded by Russian-born lawyer Louis Nathaniel Jaffe and created for the theatre company of actor Maurice Schwartz (called Mr. Second Avenue), the theatre was designed by Harrison G. Wiseman. Completed in 1926, the Yiddish Art Theatre only produced two seasons of work in the Moorish-influenced building, owing to problems between Jaffe and Schwartz. Between 1929 and 1936 various Jewish folk theatre companies produced shows there. In March of 1936 the Depression-era WPA Theatre Project took over the venue. By the 1940s a nightclub had opened in the basement, a gay supper club that was, in fact, a front for the mob. The venue showcased live performances into the 1970s. Since 1991 the building has been the Village East Cinema.

Theater, performance spaces, and the arts have always been an important part of the Village, East Village, and NoHo’s cultural heritage and built environment.

Louis N. Jaffe Art Theater (Yiddish Art Theater/Yiddish Folks Theater) ARCHITECT: Harrison G. Wiseman DATE: 1925-26 STYLE: Moorish Revival The Jaffe Art Theater is one of the most tangible reminders of the heyday of Yiddish theater in New York City in the early twentieth century. The Moorish Revival design of the cast-stone front portion of the theater building incorporates Alhambraic motifs and Judaic references, but also reflects contemporary architectural trends of the 1920s, including the search for an appropriate stylistic expression for synagogues and other Jewish institutions, the interest in contrast between areas of blank wall surface and concentrated areas of flat decoration, and the use of “exotic” styles for theaters. The interior design reflects contemporary architectural trends of the 1920s, including the search for an appropriate stylistic expression for synagogues and other Jewish institutions, and the use of exotic styles for theaters. The theater presented the work of many of the most important figures of the twentieth-century Yiddish and English-language stages, including actors, directors, writers, and designers.

183-189 Second Avenue Building Date : 1925-26 Original Use : Institutional Original Owner : Louis Jaffe Original Architect : Harrison Wiseman Description & Building Alterations The Yiddish Art Theater was designed for prominent Brooklyn lawyer and Jewish community leader Louis Jaffe. The historic building was constructed as an elaborate, 1,265 seat live theater for the Yiddish Art Theater company, which was directed by Maurice Schwartz. The interior was designed in the Moorish Revival style that was popular in synagogues at the time, and included a forty-foot ornamental ceiling with a spectacular Star of David in the center that is still present today. The Yiddish Art Theater housed elaborate productions from Maurice Schwartz and his troupe, including The Tenth Commandment in 1928, which featured dances by Michel Fokine and sets by Tony-award-winning Boris Aronson. The theater showcased I.J. Singer’s Yoshe Kalb in 1932. Schwartz’s loyal following and festive, imaginative plays attracted renowned guests such as Albert Einstein, Charlie Chaplin, George Gershwin, and former New York City mayor Fiorello LaGuardia. The building went through several names and incarnations throughout the mid-1900s, including The Stuyvesant Theater, a film exhibition house, and a stint as the East Village landmark The Phoenix Theater. In 1930, the space was occupied by Molly Picon’s Folks Theater, named for Molly Picon, one of the greatest female stars of the Yiddish stage. In 1991, the theater was restored and converted into the Village East Cinema, and in 1993 the interior and exterior were designated as landmarks by the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission.