Interview

Maria Yakuta was born in 1921 in Teplyk. She grew up with six siblings. Her parents were also born in Teplyk, and her father worked as a hatmaker. She attended a Yiddish school for seven years. Her parents and three siblings were killed in Teplyk during the war.


Other Interviews:

"Der Shtern"
The Binding of Isaac
The Matzo Bag
"and a goat on a chain"
Eating Sour Mash - the Great Hunger
Sanctification of the Moon

Peeking into the Men’s Section

Teplyk, Ukraine

Women played auxiliary roles in the synagogue service; they did not participate directly in the men’s service, which took place downstairs in the main sanctuary of the synagogue, but rather they held their own services in the women’s section, usually located on the balcony above the main sanctuary. Often the balcony was closed and the women were only able to observe the men’s section through a window. In this clip, Maria Yakuta recalls how the women in the synagogue of Teplyk would listen to the cantor singing below, and peek down to see the men dancing with the Torah scrolls.