5 Facts About PURLIE VICTORIOUS
Before you enjoy the Great Performances production, check out these five fascinating facts about the history and recent production of this groundbreaking play.
The Ellen Theatre Presents FIDDLER ON THE ROOF This Month
Montana TheatreWorks, producers of last summer's The Sound of Music, is once again assembling a first-rate cast and outstanding live orchestra, bringing to life such timeless songs as Sunrise, Sunset; Tradition; Matchmaker; and If I Were a Rich Man. Veteran actor and audience favorite Frank Simpson plays the central character of Teyve in one of the most beloved musicals of all time.
Lyric Fest Presents YIDDISHE NIGHTINGALE, A Short History Of The American Yiddish Theater
Lyric Fest presents three performances of Yiddishe Nightingale, a special concert on the history of the American Yiddish Theater, on Tuesday, February 8, 2022 at 7:00pm at the Academy of Vocal Arts in Philadelphia, PA; Wednesday, February 9, 2022 at 7:00pm at Adath Israel in Merion Station, PA; and Sunday, February 13, 2022 at 4:00pm at Beth El Congregation in Baltimore, MD.
BWW Interview: From WIESENTHAL to TEVYE: The Unstoppable, Energizing Tom Dugan
The Wallis inaugurates their new pop-up performance space on the Promenade Terrace for live audiences with the world premiere of Tom Dugan’s TEVYE IN NEW YORK! June 23, 2021. Tom co-directs (with Michael Vale) his one-man show on the well-known musical theatre lead character of FIDDLER ON THE ROOF.
Tom managed to find time amongst his many, many writing projects to answer a few of my enquiries.
BWW Interview: Hershey Felder of BEFORE FIDDLER at TheatreWorks Silicon Valley Brings Seminal Writer Sholem Aleichem to Life
Good news for Hershey Felder fans and musical theater afficionados everywhere! TheatreWorks Silicon Valley is launching the New Year with three world premiere livestreamed performances in partnership with Hershey Felder Presents Live from Florence. First up is Hershey Felder as Sholem Aleichem in BEFORE FIDDLER, presented live at 5pm PST on Sunday, February 7, 2021. Decades before the beloved musical Fiddler on the Roof first delighted audiences, there was Sholem Aleichem and his beloved character of ‘Tevye the Milkman.’ Long before songs like “Tradition,” “If I Were a Rich Man” and “Sunrise, Sunset” first beguiled audiences, there was klezmer, a music that imitated talking, laughing, weeping, and singing, and where musicians didn’t just make music, they spoke to audiences in song.
Acclaimed playwright & performer Felder will play Sholem Aleichem, giving audiences the true story of what happened ‘Before Fiddler.’ He will be joined by Florence’s celebrated Klezmerata Fiorentina, comprised of top musicians from Florence’s world-famous Orchestra of the Maggio Musicale. Filmed partially on location where the events actually took place, this production will feature the stories and characters of Sholem Aleichem, along with authentic klezmer music that is sure to move the soul. For more information and to purchase tickets, please visit www.theatreworks.org.
BroadwayWorld spoke with Felder last week from his home in Florence where he’s been based ever since the Covid pandemic hit. As always, Felder is fascinating and delightful to talk to, simultaneously brainy and emotionally transparent, and confident enough in his own talents to be open about his enduring fears.
VIDEO: 2004 FIDDLER ON THE ROOF Cast Reunites for a Rosh Hashanah 'Sabbath Prayer'
Tonight at sundown marks the beginning of Rosh Hashanah, the New Year in the Jewish faith. In celebration and in recognition of the High Holidays beginning this Shabbat, Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS has sahred this stirring version of Sabbath Prayer, created virtually by cast members from the 2004 Broadway revival of Fiddler on the Roof.
Photo Flash: LOVE IN BLOOM Opens This Weekend At Santa Monica Playhouse
Brush up your Shakespeare. Santa Monica Playhouse's bawdy musical comedy tribute to the rogues and wenches of the Bard, Love in Bloom, celebrates its 10th anniversary to insure that all's well that ends as you like it. Magic and mayhem, fops and fairies, mistaken identity, romance and humor abound in this tongue-firmly-in-cheek evening of theatre opening Saturday, October 26th
BWW Review: FIDDLER ON THE ROOF Proves Just as Vital and Engaging in 2019 as When it Debuted in 1964
Fiddler on the Roof first debuted on Broadway in 1964 and in the intervening 55 years, it's become a beloved standard in the Broadway musical canon, being revived many times and performed on stages all over the world in productions both professional and amateur. The heartwarming tale of the world-weary dairyman Tevye, his long-suffering wife Golde, their five(!) daughters and their suitors and all of the other inhabitants of the Russian village of Anatevka has been delighting audiences ever since that initial mounting and rather than growing old and rather precious over time, Fiddler on the Roof instead has become even more relevant, particularly in the current socio-political climate in which immigrants have become political pawns and in which change is constant.
BWW Review: Latest Revival of Musical Classic FIDDLER ON THE ROOF Rises at OC's Segerstrom Center
In the latest North American touring production of what continues to be one of Broadway's laudable theatrical staples, FIDDLER ON THE ROOF's amiable patriarch Tevye is now being played by Israeli-born actor Yehezkel Lazarov, who gives the iconic role a fresh, less geriatric delivery that still shines with old-world charm, nuanced depth, and a down-to-earth, relatable persona. Lazarov--who leads this touring non-Equity iteration of the Bartlett Sher-directed 2015 Broadway revival--provides just one of the many reasons to reacquaint yourself with this enduring stage classic, now finishing up its limited engagement at Segerstrom Center for the Arts through May 19, 2019. Sill lively and emotionally poignant--and quite relevant and timely to see through the lens of the uneasy times we live in--the stage musical offers a safe, if slightly sanitized view into the lives of poor Jewish families in turn-of-the-century Russia where the looming assault of pogroms are about to threaten their very lives and existence.
IL VIOLINISTA SUL TETTO: dal 22 febbraio al 10 marzo al Teatro Nuovo di Milano
Dopo il successo del 2003 torna al Teatro Nuovo di Milano Il Violinista sul tetto la commedia musicale tratta da un racconto di Sholem Aleichem, uno dei capolavori assoluti del teatro musicale americano. Il suo carattere di intensa e profonda umanita unitamente alle radici culturali della storia e delle musiche hanno fatto di questo spettacolo un evento tra i piu rivoluzionari nel panorama teatrale degli anni sessanta, contribuendo ad aprire insieme a West Side Story, una nuova era per il musical di Broadway.
BWW Jr: Mama Will Decide: Knowing What's Appropriate
'How does a bastard, orphan, son of a whore and a Scotsman...'
So begins, as we all know, a musical that has, perhaps unexpectedly, enjoyed more popularity among children than any other in recent history. And yet, even in its first moments, the show confronts children with words they (especially younger children) may not have heard before and may not understand. When a group of small children in our elementary school talent show performed this song, they sang 'bastard' but labeled Hamilton the son of 'a girl and a Scotsman.' I don't know what parental or directorial input led to this alteration, but I do wonder what the children thought about it, both the original and the substitute lyric.