Michael Burstein (; born July 1, 1945) is an Israeli-American actor known onstage as Mike Burstyn. He was born in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

to the late Yiddish-language actors, Pesach Burstein and Lillian Lux. His first cousin was Borsch Belt comedian, Jay Lester. Mike began performing on stage at

Yiddish theater Yiddish theatre consists of plays written and performed primarily by Jews in Yiddish, the language of the Ashkenazi Jewish community. The range of Yiddish theatre is broad: operetta, musical comedy, and satiric or nostalgic revues; melodrama; na ...

s from childhood, in musicals and melodramas produced by his father, Pesach Burstein, especially as part of the Four Bursteins. (Mike and his twin sister were billed as ''Motele'' and ''Zisele'') in standard Pesach Burstein productions like

A Khasene in Shtetl ''A Khasene in Shtetl'' (Yiddish for ''A Wedding in the Village'' / ''A Village Wedding'', also called ''A Shtetl Wedding'' / ''A Wedding in the Shtetl''; Yiddish: אַ חתונה אין שטעטל) is a Yiddish musical theater play written by Wi ...

(''A Wedding in the Village'').What a Life! The Autobiography of Pesach'ke Burstein, Yiddish Matinee Idol; By Pesach'ke Burstein with Lillian Lux Burstein; Syracuse University Press, 2003 () He headed out on his own after reaching adulthood, in a bid to reach audiences bigger than the

Yiddish Yiddish, historically Judeo-German, is a West Germanic language historically spoken by Ashkenazi Jews. It originated in 9th-century Central Europe, and provided the nascent Ashkenazi community with a vernacular based on High German fused with ...

stage. He has performed on television in the United States, Israel, and the Netherlands. He has performed on

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street ** Broadway Theatre (53rd Stre ...

, the

, and on the Israeli stage. He had his own show, ''De Mike Burstyn Show'' (1978–1981). He was cast as the lead in Israel Becker's '' The Flying Matchmaker'', an Israeli film. In 1981, he took part in the Israeli heats of the

Eurovision Song Contest The Eurovision Song Contest (), often known simply as Eurovision, is an international Music competition, song competition organised annually by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) among its members since 1956. Each participating broadcaster ...

with the song "Sviv kol ha'olam". The song was placed sixth. Among his most noted roles in Yiddish theater was the part in his father's production of

Itzik Manger Itzik Manger (30 May 1901, Czernowitz, then Austrian-Hungarian Empire – 21 February 1969, Gedera, Israel; ) was a prominent Yiddish language, Yiddish poet and playwright, a self-proclaimed folk bard, visionary, and 'master tailor' of the writ ...

's '' Songs of the Megillah'' (the longest running Yiddish production to date in Israel, released on Broadway as ''Megilla of Itzik Manger''). Burstyn appeared on Broadway in '' Barnum'', where he succeeded

Jim Dale Jim Dale (born James Smith; 15 August 1935) is an English actor, composer, director, narrator, singer and songwriter. In the United Kingdom he is known as a pop singer of the 1950s who became a leading actor at the National Theatre. In British ...

in the title role. He was nominated for

Drama Desk Award The Drama Desk Awards are among the most esteemed honors in New York theater, recognizing outstanding achievements across Broadway, Off-Broadway, and Off-Off-Broadway productions within the same categories. The awards are considered a signific ...

s for his performance as Mayer in '' The Rothschilds''

off-Broadway An off-Broadway theatre is any professional theatre venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, inclusive. These theatres are smaller than Broadway theatres, but larger than off-off-Broadway theatres, which seat fewer tha ...

in 1990 and in On Second Avenue in 2005. In 2009, he starred in the title role of the stage adaption by

Joseph Bologna Joseph Bologna (December 30, 1934 – August 13, 2017) was an American actor, playwright and screenwriter notable for his roles in the comedy films '' My Favorite Year'', '' Blame It on Rio'', and '' Transylvania 6-5000''. Life and career B ...

's ''Lansky''.

Personal life

Burstyn holds dual

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- American citizenship. '' The Komediant'' is a documentary recounting the lives and careers of the Burstein family.'' The Komediant'', New Yorker Video, New York, 1999

References

External links

Official websiteOriginal official website

Mike Burstyn & Friends

YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...

Videos
Mike Burstyn

Florida Atlantic University Florida Atlantic University (Florida Atlantic or FAU) is a Public university, public research university with its main campus in Boca Raton, Florida, United States. The university is a member of the State University System of Florida and has s ...

Recorded Sound Archives pages * *
GoldenLand Profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Burstyn, Mike 1945 births American male film actors 20th-century American male singers 20th-century American singers American male musical theatre actors American male stage actors American male television actors American people of Polish-Jewish descent American emigrants to Israel Israeli male film actors 20th-century Israeli male singers Israeli male musical theatre actors Israeli male stage actors Israeli male television actors Jewish American male actors Living people Male actors from New York City Yiddish-language singers of the United States Yiddish theatre performers