Bikel Peysakhovna Matatova ( ; 1928–2013) was a

Soviet The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

, and

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

i actress of the

Judeo-Tat Theatre The Judeo-Tat Theatre in Derbent, Dagestan, Russia, specializes in staging plays centered on the lives of Mountain Jews, primarily created by members of the community. The performances are conducted in the Judeo-Tat language (Juhuri). The foundi ...

and an "Honored Artist of the

Dagestan ASSR The Dagestan Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic (1921–1991), abbreviated as Dagestan ASSR or DASSR and also unofficially known as Soviet Dagestan or just simply Dagestan, was an autonomous republic of the Russian SFSR within the Soviet Union ...

."Petr Agarunov. In 1990, by the Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Council of the Dagestan ASSR, Bikel Matatova was awarded the title of "Honored Workers of Culture of the Dagestan ASSR."Irina Mikhailova. Book ( ru:«Самородки Дагестана») – ''Gifted of Dagestan'' by Irina Mikhailova, Makhachkala, Russia. p. 36. 2014. In 1948, she received an honorary diploma for "25 years of service in cultural leadership over the armed forces of the

USSR The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

Biography

Bikel Matatova was born on August 20, 1928, in

Derbent Derbent, also historically known as Darband, or Derbend, is the southernmost city in Russia. It is situated along the southeastern coast of the Dagestan, Republic of Dagestan, occupying the narrow gateway between the Caspian Sea and the Caucas ...

and grew up in a narrow, cramped neighborhood on Tagi-Zade Street, near the

synagogue A synagogue, also called a shul or a temple, is a place of worship for Jews and Samaritans. It is a place for prayer (the main sanctuary and sometimes smaller chapels) where Jews attend religious services or special ceremonies such as wed ...

. She was the eldest of four siblings. In 1933, her father, Pisakh Matatov, passed away at the age of 33. After his death, her mother, Istire-Melke, raised the children alone. To support the family, she worked in the

Caspian Caspian can refer to: *The Caspian Sea *The Caspian Depression, surrounding the northern part of the Caspian Sea *The Caspians, the ancient people living near the Caspian Sea *The Caspian languages spoken in northern Iran and southeastern Azerbaij ...

fishing industry, pulling heavy nets from the water alongside the men. As she worked, she sang songs. Several actors from the Judeo-Tat Theatre worked with her, including

Yuno Semyonov Yuno Shaulovich Semyonov (; 1899–1961) was a Soviet Union prose writer, playwright and artistic director. He wrote in the Judeo-Tat language. His work was characterized by plays on the topics of the day, full of sarcasm and humor. He was one of ...

, as well as musicians: Ishchey, who played the

tambourine The tambourine is a musical instrument in the percussion family consisting of a frame, often of wood or plastic, with pairs of small metal jingles, called "zills". Classically the term tambourine denotes an instrument with a drumhead, thoug ...

; Yunoshkei, the

kamancheh The kamancheh (also kamānche or kamāncha) (, , , ) is an Iranian bowed string instrument used in Persian, Azerbaijani, Armenian, Kurdish, Georgian, Turkmen, and Uzbek music with slight variations in the structure of the instrument. Th ...

; and Rifke, the

tar Tar is a dark brown or black viscous liquid of hydrocarbons and free carbon, obtained from a wide variety of organic materials through destructive distillation. Tar can be produced from coal, wood, petroleum, or peat. "a dark brown or black b ...

. Mukhoil Faradzhev served as the theater's prompter. In 1936, a state drama theater, combining

Azerbaijanis Azerbaijanis (; , ), Azeris (, ), or Azerbaijani Turks (, ) are a Turkic peoples, Turkic ethnic group living mainly in the Azerbaijan (Iran), Azerbaijan region of northwestern Iran and the Azerbaijan, Republic of Azerbaijan. They are predomin ...

and

Mountain Jews Mountain Jews are the Mizrahi Jews, Mizrahi Jewish subgroup of the eastern and northern Caucasus, mainly Azerbaijan, and various republics in the Russian Federation: Chechnya, Ingushetia, Dagestan, Karachay-Cherkessia, and Kabardino-Balkaria. M ...

performances, operated in Derbent. The theater had a musical group led by composer Djumshud Ashurov. The actors encouraged Bikel Matatova's mother to take a role in one of their performances. It was through this experience that young Bikel discovered her love for the theater. Bikel Matatova studied at the Derbent School named after

Maxim Gorky Alexei Maximovich Peshkov (; – 18 June 1936), popularly known as Maxim Gorky (; ), was a Russian and Soviet writer and proponent of socialism. He was nominated five times for the Nobel Prize in Literature. Before his success as an aut ...

, where instruction was conducted in her native

Judeo-Tat Judeo-Tat or Juhuri (, , ) is a Judeo-Persian dialect and the traditional language spoken by the Mountain Jews in the eastern Caucasus Mountains, especially Azerbaijan, parts of Russia and today in Israel. It belongs to the southwestern group ...

language using the

Latin alphabet The Latin alphabet, also known as the Roman alphabet, is the collection of letters originally used by the Ancient Rome, ancient Romans to write the Latin language. Largely unaltered except several letters splitting—i.e. from , and from � ...

. During these years, she had already made her choice—she wanted to become a theater actress. Her entire future was tied to the stage. After classes, she would run to the theater, attentively listen to rehearsals, memorize all the roles, and perform and sing at home. This passion defined her school years from 1937 to 1939. Bikel began performing on stage at a young age and soon became an actress.Diana Nisimova. Her first role in the theater was as a ball in the play '' Shah Abbas''. She performed alongside her mother, as well as many actors and actresses of the State Mountain Jewish Theater. As her career progressed, Bikel Matatova took on numerous roles and traveled with the theater to various places where Mountain Jews lived, bringing her performances to audiences far and wide. During the

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, the Judeo-Tat Theatre, like the entire Soviet Union, faced difficult times. Bikel Matatova wrote in her memoirs: Soon, the situation changed when the

Lenin Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov ( 187021 January 1924), better known as Vladimir Lenin, was a Russian revolutionary, politician and political theorist. He was the first head of government of Soviet Russia from 1917 until Death and state funeral of ...

collective farm began supporting actors by organizing performances for collective farmers. Bikel Matatova, along with her mother and fellow actors, gave concerts for the community. She and her mother were later invited to work in

Khuchni Khuchni (, ) is a rural locality (a selo) and the administrative center of Tabasaransky District of the Republic of Dagestan, Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of ...

, the administrative center of

Tabasaransky District Tabasaransky District () is an administrativeLaw #16 and municipalLaw #6 district (raion), one of the forty-one in the Republic of Dagestan, Russia. It is located in the southeast of the republic. The area of the district is . Its administrative c ...

. During the day, they worked in the library, and in the evenings, they rehearsed. Eventually, Bikel was appointed as the artistic director of the House of Culture, allowing her to continue her passion for theater. After returning to Derbent, Bikel Matatova performed in many plays, including '' Mashadi Ibad'', where she played the role of Gulnaz, and ''

Ashiq Qarib ''Ashiq Qarib'' (, literally "the wandering ashik") is an anonymous Romance (love), romantic dastan, composed not earlier than the 16—17th centuries and popular in Transcaucasia and Central Asia. The verses, which are incorporated into the pro ...

'', where she portrayed Shahsenem. In the play ''The Five-Ruble Bride'', with a libretto by

Mammed Said Ordubadi Mammad Said Ordubadi (; 24 March 1872 – 1 May 1950) was an Azerbaijani writer, poet, playwright and journalist. Ordubadi started his career as a poet. His articles and poetry were published in many of the Azerbaijani-language magazines of th ...

and music composed by Said Rustamov, she was entrusted with the role of Naz-Naz. Matatova continued to take on musical roles until 1960. In 1961, the director staged Sergey Izgiyayev's play ''Cousin'', which depicted the life of Mountain Jews. Bikel Matatova played the role of the milkmaid Gyuli, while her mother portrayed the elderly woman Memeli. That same year, the opera-play Leili and Majnun was staged, translated into Tat by Izgiyaev. Matatova played the lead role of Leili, while her mother took on the role of Majnun's mother. In 1963, she starred as the title character in ''Aykhanum'' at the age of 35. In 1964, the State Judeo-Tat Theatre was closed due to a lack of funding, leading to the revival of an amateur theater group. Abram Avdalimov became its leader, and during this period,

collective farms Collective farming and communal farming are various types of "agricultural production in which multiple farmers run their holdings as a joint enterprise". There are two broad types of communal farms: agricultural cooperatives, in which member-o ...

were restructured into state farms. In 1967, the theater was reestablished as the People's Theater, with

Musaib Dzhum-Dzhum Musaib Mamedalievich Dzhum-Dzhum (; ; 1905 – July 1974) was a Soviet theatre director. He worked as a director in the Azerbaijani, Judeo-Tat and Lezgin theaters in Derbent, Dagestan ASSR. In 1945, Musaib Dzhum-Dzhum was awarded the title of "Hon ...

as the director and Avdalimov as his assistant. The actors rehearsed during the day and performed in the evenings. Bikel Matatova continued to act in all productions, often playing leading roles. In 1975, actress Istire-Melke, the mother of Bikel Matatova, passed away. The People's Judeo-Tat Theatre remained active from 1967 to 1992, with Matatova performing alongside both veteran and new actors. In the 1991, Bikel Matatova emigrated to

. In 2001, in the city of

Hadera Hadera (, ) is a city located in the Haifa District of Israel, in the northern Sharon plain, Sharon region, approximately 45 kilometers (28 miles) from the major cities of Tel Aviv and Haifa. The city is located along 7 km (5 mi) of ...

, under the direction of Roman Izyaev, the Judeo-Tat Theatre of Musical Comedy, ''Rambam'', was established. This marked a new stage in Bikel Matatova's career. She was delighted to return to the stage she cherished, where she once again sang, danced, and performed. Bikel Matatova passed away in 2013 in Hadera, Israel.

Legacy

Her memoirs, written in

Juhuri Judeo-Tat or Juhuri (, , ) is a Judeo-Persian dialect and the traditional language spoken by the Mountain Jews in the eastern Caucasus Mountains, especially Azerbaijan, parts of Russia and today in Israel. It belongs to the southwestern group of ...

, were published in the almanac ''Govleyi'' in two issues—No. 21 (1994) and No. 22 (1995). Bikel Matatova's stage performances inspired the famous poet Sergei Izgiyaev, who wrote the poem ''Bickel'' for her. On October 12, 2009, at the first arts festival, ''Pearls of the Caucasus'', held in

Netanya Netanya () () or Natanya (), is a city in the "Planet Bekasi" Central District (Israel), Setanyahu of Israel, Israel BAB ih, and is the capital of the surrounding Sharon plain. It is north of Tel Aviv, and south of Haifa, between the Poleg stre ...

, Israel, Honored Artist of Dagestan Bikel Matatova was invited to the stage and presented with an honorary certificate in celebration of her 80th birthday and the 65th anniversary of her stage career.

Awards

* Honored Artist of the DASSR * 1991, Honored Workers of Culture of the Dagestan ASSR * 1948, An honorary diploma for "25 years of service in cultural leadership over the armed forces of the USSR"

Literature

References

External links