Aline Bernstein was born in New York City on December 22,1980. She was born the elder daughter of Rebecca and Joseph Frankau. Joseph Frankau was an actor of German-Jewish ancestry. Frankau was originally a poet. However, the language of theatre fascinated him. Frankau's mentor, Harlan, an older man in the literary group he was a part of, convinced Frankau that his true talent was in acting. This was the turning point for Frankau, when he decided to become an actor. Aline traveled the acting circuit with her parents during her childhood.

Aline Bernstein's parents had both died by the time she had reached the age of seventeen. Her aunt, Rachel Goldsmith, helped her cope during these painstaking times and became her guardian. She lived with her aunt who had a theatrical boarding house on West 44th Street in New York City. Bernstein was a talented artist a

It was during this year during which Aline became aware of an impairment in her hearing. This frightened her terribly since deafness ran in her family. Doctors she went in search of, for further information, had no positive news. She was told that although the damage was not yet too great, it would be progressive and the rate of the deterioration of her hearing could not be determined. (Klein, p.203) This led her to a slight depression, which she quickly over came. Her attention and concentration on the theatre became greater than before.

The Playhouse had become an instant success from the moment it opened. Actors and playwrights from all over the country and Europe would come down to the Neighborhood Playhouse. People like John Galsworthy, Eugene O'Neil, Elmer Rice and Clifford Odets would present their earliest works at the Playhouse. (Epstein, p.327)

The Lewisohn sisters returned for the 1923-24 season and despite Aline's commitment to theatre uptown she continued to work for them. Aline continued working uptown and in the Playhouse in order to expand her career. One of Aline's continual contributions was the annual "Grand Street Follies" which was a parody of theatrical activities all over town. It had started as an in house joke used to wrap up the fall and winter season however it caught the attention of a much wider audience and became a highly acclaimed performance. Many actors and actresses began their careers in the "Follies." Their impressions of well known personalities won them long term contracts on Broadway. Bernstein enjoyed being able to laugh at her profession as well as her colleagues. Bernstein jokingly made fun Robert Edmond Jones' elaborate set for Hamlet. In the set he designed there were several ropes and ladders which enabled the actor to dash and climb as he liked. In the "Follies" version of Hamlet!

The Playhouse was to be the first theatre in New York to design and make all of it's own scenery, costumes and properties. This helped launch the concept that stagecraft could be a significant art form in itself. The combination of design, music, lighting was equally important to the role of the actors. Aline would later say that the profession of "scenic designer" began at the Playhouse. (Cleaver, p.97)

Theodore Bernstein, Aline's future husband, emigrated from Germany in the mid1890's. He was seven years older than Aline. He came to this country as a clerk and later moved on to be a Wall Street broker. Aline and Theodore were married on November 2nd of 1902.They had two children during their marriage; the first Theodore in 1904 and the second Edna in1906. During their first winter together as a family Aline had left Henri's classes with the notion that she would soon return to them. Aline also fought two years to gain acceptance to the United Scenic Art Union. Aline was the first female member.

In 1922 the Lewisohn sisters informed Aline of their plans to close down the playhouse for the 1922-23 season. (Klein, p.132) They felt that everyone had long needed a rest and it was time to carefully evaluate the accomplishments of the playhouse. Furthermore the sisters had wanted to make one of their trips abroad in order to discover and bring back new ideas to the playhouse. This hiatus gave Aline the opportunity to do more work uptown with other producers. This was the year which would make her name familiar on Broadway.

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