Regional Reviews: Albuquerque/Santa Fe Regional Reviews Fiddler on the Roof Also see Dean's review of Juno and the Paycock
This is one of Landmark Musicals' finest productions. This is partly due to the excellent non-professional actors that we have in Albuquerque, but also to bringing in a director with a lot of Fiddlers under his belt (Gary John LaRosa) and our luck in having Albuquerque be the retirement spot for a professional set designer (Dahl Delu). It doesn't seem to me that Mr. Delu has retired in any sense. All of the sets he has done for Landmark or UNM have been knock-outs, and this one (with an assist from Wendie Cutcher) might be his best. The Chagall stage curtain, the multiple drops, the structures that open and close and roll to allow incredibly rapid set changes, all of these are things you would see in any professional touring company, and you'd be lucky if they are done as well there. Likewise, the costumes (Tracy Ellen Franke), props (Debra Miller), hair (Caitlen Hudak), makeup (Marilyn Lafer and Maria Earls), lighting (Myers Godwin), the always-flawless sound by Chad Scheer, and the live orchestra (led by Andrew Alegria) all contribute to make this a truly professional non-professional production. I'm guessing that most people by now know the basics of the story. It's about Tevye the milkman and his wife Golde and their five daughters in the town of Anatevka, in what was then the Russian Empire and what is now Ukraine (at least for the time being). It's 1905, the year of the first Russian revolution, when Nicholas II was allowed to stay in power but forced to agree to a constitutional government. Jews are viewed with suspicion by the authorities as radicals and revolutionaries (as is the character of Perchik in this story). This is a time of increasingly violent pogroms against the Jews, culminating at the end of the play with their total expulsion from Anatevka. (One wonders what ultimately happens to those family members who move to Warsaw and Krakow instead of to America.) Tevye's more pressing problem, though, is those five daughters. In those days, you were expected to provide a dowry to get your daughter married off. What can he provide? Nothing, really. In a way, he's lucky that the three oldest defy his commands as to who they should or should not marry. Imagine, getting married for love! They're putting Yente the matchmaker out of business, and smashing all the traditions that Tevye has relied on his whole life. It's a new world that they're all going to, in more ways than one. There are plenty of well-known songs in this show: "Sunrise, Sunset," "If I Were a Rich Man," "To Life (L'Chaim)," and more. But I was most struck by a song I had totally forgotten, the touching and lovely "Far from the Home I Love," sung here poignantly by Daniela Deuel as Hodel, the second daughter. I've already mentioned the outstanding creative team. The cast is equally excellent. Michael Finnegan (Jewish on his mother's side) is totally convincing as Tevye, as good a performance in the role as I've ever seen (Zero Mostel was slightly before my time). Lorri Oliver is a fine foil for him as Golde; I've been impressed by her acting in the past, and now I know that she can sing just as well as she can act. The cast of 31 is strong all the way through. The ones that stood out the most for me (and this is pretty unfair, since almost everyone was really good) are the afore-mentioned Daniela Deuel; Julian Singer-Corbin, who is a strapping Perchik; Vernon Reza as Lazar Wolf; Kathy Millé Wimmer in the showy role of Yente; Hugh Witemeyer, who makes the bad-guy constable somewhat sympathetic; and Harrison Wirstrom and Adrianna Deuel as Fyedka and Chava, the interfaith couple. And when is somebody finally going to give Matthew Amend a starring role? If I haven't made it clear enough by now, let me reiterate: This is not just a show for Jews. It's one of the all-time great American musicals. It makes you laugh, and then leaves you with a lump in your throat. Whoever you are, I encourage you to see it while you can. Fiddler on the Roof by Jerry Bock, Sheldon Harnick, and Joseph Stein, based on stories by Sholem Aleichem, presented by Landmark Musicals at the Rodey Theatre in the University of New Mexico Center for the Performing Arts. Through March 30, 2014. Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30, Sundays at 2:00, extra matinee Saturday March 22 at 2:00. Info at landmarkmusicals.org. Tickets at the UNM box offices.
--Dean Yannias |