May 3–10, 2001

arts picks|theater

Fiddler on the Roof

To everyone who thought they would explode if forced to hear "Sunrise, Sunset" even once more at a wedding or bar mitzvah: I feel your pain.

Fiddler (and even more, its score) was ubiquitous in my youth. It opened on Broadway in 1964 and was still there in 1972. The historic run was doubtless due in part to the show’s Jewish theme and more specifically, the cagey sense of the creative team that it would resonate with a large audience.

But neither cynicism nor sour family memories can dim the real greatness of Fiddler, which, for all that it was an institutional juggernaut, also broke significant theatrical ground. There was Jerome Robbins’ direction and choreography, and an opening number ("Tradition") that remains peerless in using song and dance to set up a story. Fiddler also had Boris Aronson’s painterly, museum-worthy scenery. And there are those favorite songs, from the ebullient "Matchmaker" to the mournful "Anatevka": all characterful, all superbly constructed. (Hello, Dolly!, the ’60s’ other mega-hit and a work to which Fiddler is often compared, has no comparable patina.)

The first Tevye was, of course, Zero Mostel, who by all accounts was infuriatingly inconsistent (brilliant and disciplined one night, doing nightclub shtick the next). Following him were Herschel Bernardi, Topol, Jan Peerce, Luther Adler and many more. We’ve even glimpsed a would-be Tevyette: Tyne Daly recently sang "If I Were A Rich Man" at a benefit concert.

Fiddler should be served with distinction at the Mann. Theodore Bikel is another veteran Tevye, having played the role on and off for decades. He is a fine actor in general, as well as a splendid folk singer, with expertise in many styles and languages.

In hands like these, expect Fiddler’s emotional magic to be undimmed. Prepare for an evening, as the song says, "laden with happiness and tears."

—David Anthony Fox

May 15-20, $31-$62.50, Mann Center for the Performing Arts, 52nd and Parkside, 215-893-1999.