Sheldon Harnick News

OK I'm back and let's just dive right in for the rest of the amazing shows I saw in New York.

The producers of the Broadway revival of Fiddler on the Roof have announced that the production successfully raised nearly $30,000 for The United Way of Genesee County's Flint Water Fund, which directly provides aid the Michigan city's residents, currently suffering from a critical drinking water contamination crisis.  This contribution was a result of Fiddler on the Roof's donation of $2 from every full-price ticket purchased to the show for all February 2016 performances.

Laura Benanti (Amalia), Zachary Levi (Georg),Gavin Creel (Kodaly), Michael McGrath(Sipos), Jane Krakowski (Ilona) and Byron Jennings (Maraczek) star in Roundabout's new Broadway production of SHE LOVES ME, directed by Scott Ellis, choreographed byWarren Carlyle with musical direction by Paul Gemignani. This classic musical comedy features a book by Joe Masteroff, lyrics by Sheldon Harnickand music by Jerry Bock.

It's one of Broadway's most famous dances. Can you keep your balance?

Cast members from Fiddler on the Roof will perform and sign CDS at the Barnes & Noble on the Upper East Side (150 East 86th Street) on Friday, March 18th at 4:30 p.m. in celebration of the New 2016 Broadway Cast Album being released worldwide that same day by Broadway Records, it was announced today.

Freaking out over High School Musical 4? Didn't have time to check in on your favorite Broadway stars? Well don't worry BroadwayWorld has rounded up some of the biggest stories from this week from Broadway and beyond with BroadwayWorld's 'This Week in Pictures.'

From Sweet Charity to City of Angels, "Witchcraft" to "The Best is Yet to Come," Cy Coleman lived on both Broadway and the pop charts, with firm roots in the jazz world. He wrote standards made famous by such singers as Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald and Nat King Cole, and partnered with lyricists like Carolyn Leigh, Dorothy Fields and Peggy Lee. Grammy-winning singer-pianist Billy Stritch, a friend and protege of Coleman, celebrates the jazz side of this versatile, quintessentially New York composer in Witchcraft: The Jazz Magic of Cy Coleman.

In a follow-up to their 2013 presentation Sin Twisters, on Wednesday night at Feinstein's/54 Below, show biz veterans Anita Gillette and Penny Fuller offered stories from the Broadway trenches, songs from their musical history, and affectionate one-upmanship, again deftly directed by Barry Kleinbort.

Laura Benanti (Amalia), Zachary Levi (Georg),Gavin Creel (Kodaly), Michael McGrath(Sipos), Jane Krakowski (Ilona) and Byron Jennings (Maraczek) star in Roundabout's new Broadway production of SHE LOVES ME, directed by Scott Ellis, choreographed byWarren Carlyle with musical direction by Paul Gemignani. This classic musical comedy features a book by Joe Masteroff, lyrics by Sheldon Harnickand music by Jerry Bock. SHE LOVES ME is currently in preview performances and officially opens on March 17, 2016. This is a limited engagement through July 10, 2016 at Studio 54 on Broadway (254 West 54th Street). Check out a first look at the cast in action below!

Let's take a trip back in time, shall we? The year was 1993 (or '94, or '95....'96?), I was 7 (or 8, or 9...10?) years old, and my parents took my sister and me to the Three Little Bakers dinner theater in Wilmington, Delaware, where 'Fiddler On The Roof' was playing. Unfortunately, I don't remember much about this experience other than that it was the first time I ever had a Shirley Temple, the waitress made me cry, and the line for the prime rib buffet was very long. This was, however, the first time those famous first strains of Jerry Bock's violin solo entered the back of my brain and psyche, and never left. Over the next several years, Fiddler lightly weaved its way in and out of my life: the occasional off key rendition of 'Sunrise, Sunset' at Jewish Community North, catching the film on AMC, and that community theatre production that my synagogue's men's club brought their families to (ironically enough, the girl playing Hodel ended up being my prom date). While at Juilliard, my best friend, Scott and I saw the 2004 revival together TWICE. Once with Alfred Molina, and another time with Harvey Fierstein and Rosie O'Donnell. For over a decade, it's been part of our rotation of inside jokes to cast Tevye and Golde with obscure and asinine choices of actors, then perform 'Do You Love Me', impersonating said actors (Keanu Reaves as Tevye and Paula Deen as Golde, anyone?). As an American suburban Jewish kid growing up in the late '90s/early 00's, Fiddler was just part of the narrative -- Chinese Food on Christmas.

A Broadway star thrills at the opportunity to sing a classic song for the idol who introduced it.

Just last night, Roundabout Theatre Company hosted the 50th Anniversary Gala: 'Spring Gala 2016: Celebrating 50 Years of Extraordinary Theatre' in the Grand Ballroom of the Waldorf Astoria (301 Park Avenue, NYC). The evening was a celebration of Roundabout's 50th Anniversary and recognized the accomplishments of six-time Tony winner Audra McDonald and Roundabout's Chairman of the Board Tom Tuft and present them with The Jason Robards Award for Excellence in Theatre. BroadwayWorld was there for the big night and you can check out photos from the red carpet below!

A hilarious video that imagines FIDDLER ON THE ROOF's gentile characters starring in their own sitcom.

Roundabout Theatre Company (Todd Haimes, Artistic Director) and the Board of Directors (Tom Tuft, Chairman) have embarked on a $50 million Anniversary Campaign to ensure the future of the 50- year- old not-for-profit institution. The campaign was announced last night at Roundabout's Spring Gala at the Waldorf Astoria, honoring six-time Tony Award-winner Audra McDonald and Chairman Tom Tuft.

Five big shows open on Broadway this March. Which ones are you most excited for?

The upcoming FIDDLER ON THE ROOF Broadway Cast Album will feature an additional bonus track from co-stars Adam Kantor and Alexandra Silber!

Today in 2004, Fiddler on the Roof opened at the Minskoff Theatre, where it ran for 781 performances. Fiddler on the Roof is a musical with music by Jerry Bock, lyrics by Sheldon Harnick, and book by Joseph Stein, set in Tsarist Russia in 1905. It is based on Tevye and his Daughters (or Tevye the Milkman and Other Tales) by Sholem Aleichem. The story centers on Tevye, the father of five daughters, and his attempts to maintain his family and Jewish religious traditions while outside influences encroach upon their lives. The original Broadway production of the show, which opened in 1964, had the first musical theatre run in history to surpass 3,000 performances.

The Tony nominee is creating and headlining concerts showcasing musical-theater composers; first up: LaChiusa.

The Broadway star is a judge for a video contest sponsored by SheKnows asking people to describe what feminism means to them.

The classical musician who provides the fiddler's music has a unique emotional connection to the classic musical.