Terry Gross

So did she teach you anything about singing or acting when you were growing up?

That's interesting.

Yeah.

Michael Tilson Thomas, welcome back to Fresh Air.

The role of the Yiddish theater was very important for Jewish immigrants to the United States, many of whom spoke only Yiddish.

And so they couldn't read the regular newspapers.

A lot of the English language theater would not have literal meaning to them because they wouldn't understand the language.

So the Yiddish stage, I mean, that was a really important, particularly in New York, a really important...

place for gathering and for doing anything cultural.

The name Tomaszewski is such a famous name in the world of theater and in the world of Yiddish theater.

I grew up knowing that name.

I knew that Tomaszewskis were famous performers on the Yiddish stage, but that's about all I knew.

Your last name is Thomas, which is an abbreviated version of Tomaszewski.

How did Tomaszewski become Thomas?

Were you aware of that when you were growing up?

Your grandfather was dead, but your grandmother lived until you were 16 or 17, and she lived nearby, and I think you were pretty close to her.

Did you get a sense of people stalking her?

Or was it way too late for that because she was already in her 70s?

Although your grandfather died before you were born, you got to know your grandmother, Bessie Tomaszewski, pretty well.

And tell us about the kind of parts that she played in the Yiddish theater.