BROADWAY SNAP-SHOT
by Russell Bouthiller
Dateline: March 1, 2004
FIDDLER ON THE ROOF
Packed with such stalwart tunes as "Tradition," "If I Were a Rich Man," and "Sunrise, Sunset," the Joseph Stein/Jerry Bock/Sheldon Harnick musical, FIDDLER ON THE ROOF, is back on the boards. Starring Alfred Molina as the touchingly tortured Tevye, this lavish revival opened last Thursday at the Minskoff Theatre,
Some forty years ago, the original production of FIDDLER ON THE ROOF opened at the Imperial Theatre, garnering eight Tony Awards and making Broadway history as the longest running musical of its day. This new production, directed by David Leveaux, incorporates something old and something new. Stein's sturdy book remains the same and Leveaux retained Jerome Robbins' original choreography. The added feature is a new Bock/ Harnick song, "Topsy-Turvy," offered up by Yente (Nancy Opel) in the second act.
Set in the Jewish village of Anatevka of 1905 Russia, "the eve of the revolutionary period," the long-suffering Tevye copes with a lame horse, a put-upon wife, the threat of "pogram" and the blessing of five daughters. Chatting with God in humorous monologues, this simple dairy farmer never questions outright the workings of the Lord, but comes awfully close. As one of God's Chosen People, he asks why He couldn't choose someone else, for a change. Were it not for his faith and customs, so vibrantly presented in the opening number,"Tradition," Tevye would be hard-pressed to find reason to go on.
Wife Golde (Randy Graff) endures with an "I'm-too-busy-to-be-bothered" approach, keeping an eye to the future for her daughters. Marriage is the key to all their happiness and the local Yente is more than happy to make a match. But, it is the role of the father to sign off on a suitable mate and when one daughter after another begins to meddle in their own affairs, Tevye is forced to weigh time-honored custom against Twentieth century concepts of love.
The first break comes when eldest daughter Tzeitel (Sally Murphy) refuses to marry Lazar Wolf, the village butcher, because she is secretly in love with the impecunious tailor, Motel (John Cariani). Tevye must convince his wife this is the better arrangement, for their daughter will find true happiness with him. The next wrinkle comes when daughter Hodel (Laura Michelle Kelly) takes up with political dissident Perchik (Robert Petkoff) who gets sent off the Siberia.
Tevye begrudgingly gives his blessing to the elder daughters' choices, but when middle child Chava (Tricia Paoluccio) decides to wed outside of her faith, his tolerance is strained to the limit. Marrying a nebbish and a hot-head is one thing, but a Goyim is another story. Tevye disowns his daughter and when the pogrom reaches Anatevka, he refuses any leniency this gentile connection has to offer.
Out-of-town performances of this production received biting commentary in Los Angeles where one critic claimed it was not Jewish enough. Where the line is drawn is anyone's guess. Leveaux's inclusive casting in the recent revival of NINE-a black woman played the role of Saraghina, offering up the song "Be Italian"-garnered little, if any, notice. That this FIDDLER should be characterized as ethnically incorrect in this day and age seems politically incorrect.
Alfred Molina, whatever his religious tilt, is soundly convincing as a child of Abraham. Vocally, he lives up to the Bock/Harnick score with a fine balance of contemplation and schmaltz. Randy Graff as Golde suffered a vocal wobble as the night progressed. Still, her early numbers were strong and her performance rang true throughout. And, Nancy Opel as Yente seemed to be everything a good Yente ought to be.
Daughters Murphy, Kelly and Paoluccio read like an attendance sheet at a Catholic girls' school, but without referring to the program, you'd never know they were not pogrom profiled. Each proved crisply melodic and offered a rich interpretations of their characters. John Cariani as the hyperactive Motel could not have been cast better and David Wohl as the passed-over butcher grumbles like a burly bear.
Scenic designs by Tom Pye-a grove of denuded birches-are stunningly executed. While the use of bare trees to convey bleakness has been overdone of late, Pye's not-so-new concepts effectively evoke a humble setting. The onstage orchestra is unobtrusive, effectively demarcated by Brian MacDevitt's lighting designs. FIDDLER ON THE ROOF, a rich, welcoming production that is sure to please many.