Tower Theater Performs Lively Broadway Classic “Fiddler on the Roof”
Clear, lively notes of a fiddle pierce the silence of the darkened theater. A single spotlight slowly illuminates the source of the resonating melody: a shadowy figure perched atop a building – a fiddler on the roof.
Alluvion Stage Company, Liberty’s professional theater company, opened its season Sept. 23 with a production of “Fiddler on the Roof.” First performed in 1964 on Broadway, this award-winning theater staple came to life at the Tower Theater despite COVID-19 related challenges.
Although postponed from its scheduled Sept. 18 debut because of quarantined cast members, the show went on. A combination of professional actors and student interns took the stage to tell, through word, song and dance, the story of a Jewish community fighting for its traditions and safety in Czarist Russia at the beginning of the 20th century.
As the fiddler on the roof, played by James Mahler, continues his tune, a wiry middle-aged man strolls onto stage. After observing the fiddler, he delivers the thematically crucial opening line: “A fiddler on the roof. Sounds crazy, no? But in our little village of Anatevka, you might say every one of us is a fiddler on the roof, trying to scratch out a pleasant, simple tune without breaking his neck.”
The character delivering the line is Tevye, a poor milkman with five daughters, played by professional actor Christopher Nelson. Nelson played this role when he was a Liberty student 20 years ago.
Tevye is so plagued by poverty that his concern weaves its way into his conversations with family, friends and God. However, his humorous spirit and dedication to his family have endeared him to his fellow villagers – and audiences, too.
The fiddler perched precariously on the roof symbolizes the search for the delicate balance between holding fast to tradition and adapting in changing times. This theme especially rings true in the life of Tevye, as he watches his daughters break tradition by falling in love without the guidance of the matchmaker.
Tevye’s eldest daughter, Tzeitel, played by Abby Mann, rejects the village’s matchmaking traditions first. She refuses the matchmaker’s choice of the older and wealthier butcher and asks to marry her poor childhood friend Motel, a tailor, instead. After much begging, pleading and a fabricated vision of Tzeitel’s namesake grandmother, Tevye’s wife Golde approves the match.
The second daughter, Hodel, played by Sydney Borchers, breaks the custom of forbidden dancing between opposite sexes. At Tzeitel’s wedding, she dances with Perchik, a student visiting from Kiev, who has been teaching the girls Marxist interpretations of Bible stories. They fall in love and later inform Tevye of their engagement, requesting his blessing rather than his permission.
Chava, Tevye’s intelligent third daughter, begins a secret romance with a young man named Fyedka after he lends her a book. Fyedka serves as a Russian soldier and does not share Chava’s Jewish faith. On this principle, Tevye will not budge, and he forces Chava to choose between her family and her love.
The Jews face violence at the hands of Russian soldiers, and Russia eventually orders them to leave Anatevka. While forced to leave their homeland behind, Tevye’s family takes their traditions with them.
The fiddler, embodying the village’s traditions, follows Tevye out as he leaves for America.
Throughout the production, the drab village of Anatevka comes alive with spirited musical numbers performed by actors attired in traditional dresses and suits. Characters sing of love, longing, celebration and mistakes. This wrestling with love and tradition has resonated with audiences for decades.
The Tower Theater’s 2021-22 show season will include productions of “Little Moon of Alban,” “Oliver!” and “42nd Street.” To purchase tickets for upcoming productions, visit liberty.edu/tickets.
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