Fiddler on the Roof is one of the best-loved stage musicals of all time. For more than 40 years, audiences worldwide have been captivated by the play.
It seems theatregoers just can’t get enough of this nine-time Tony award-winning musical that spawned memorable musical hits such as “Sunrise, Sunset”, “Tradition”, “Matchmaker, Matchmaker” and “If I were a Rich Man”.
That trend continues this summer as Rosebud Theatre celebrates its 25th Anniversary season. Already, matinee and evening performances in June are nearly sold out.
Bracing for the possibility of having a record setting 20,000 people see Fiddler on the Roof this summer, Rosebud Theatre’s Artistic Director Morris Ertman shares his insights as to why this story resonates so strongly with audiences.
“First of all, Fiddler on the Roof is an Everyman story. Tevye the milkman is every father and every husband, regardless of cultural background. He loves fiercely, and is loved; honestly argues out the difficulty of life’s struggles; grapples with generational change ... and manages to do all of that with song!”
“Fiddler on the Roof features great songs. It is the only musical that I know where everyone from farmers and tradespersons to theatre people actually break into song when the show is mentioned. Of course there are so many songs that people know and love – “If I Were A Rich Man”, “Matchmaker, Matchmaker” and “Tradition”… songs full of pathos and life.”
“This is a story about a family man who gives up his daughters for, and to love, in a village steeped in tradition. That story is at the core of every generation of fathers, mothers, daughters and sons.”
“This musical is a story of displaced human beings. That immigrant culture lives somewhere in the ethos of most every family, and resonates at the centre of this beloved musical. People everywhere are constantly moving to make a better life for their families. And, I think this story is particularly poignant for Albertans and Canadians, whose roots lie in the dispersion of families and their cultures, from distant native lands to places where they could build a better life for their children. Alberta in particular is the product of an ever evolving immigrant population, many of whom came in generations past from Russia.”
“Lastly, Fiddler on the Roof is about how we balance life. A fiddler perches himself on the peak of a roof, and while trying not to fall off, he is attempting to make life merry in the midst of day-to-day struggles.
He makes music in the most precarious of places. He is Tevye’s spirit, and the spirit of every person who seeks to live life to the fullest despite life’s obstacles.”
Audiences can re-kindle their personal love affair with Fiddler on the Roof at the Rosebud Opera House from May 30 and to August 30.