Review by Matthew Murray
After almost two years of making questionable contributions to the American musical theatre, British director David Leveaux has done the impossible: He's injected some soul into his lifeless revival of Fiddler on the Roof. Unfortunately, he's done it in a way that will make you less apt to shout "To life!" than "Hey mama, welcome to the shtetl!"
An Exotic Tevye in Old Anatevka By BEN BRANTLEY
With Harvey Fierstein as Tevye, "Fiddler" has gone from having too little of a personality at its center to having too much of one.
The entire show feels warmer than it did a year ago.
It is not a traditional "Fiddler," nor perhaps is it the definitive one. But it is one that is full of beauty, and that will serve this revival's purpose for today.
(Note: Something must be done about the mob scene at the entrance to the theater, where bags are checked for security at the same spot where tickets are torn. There must be a better way to channel human traffic in a Broadway theater.)
A Cozy Little McShtetl by BEN BRANTLEY
Thanks to dogged miscasting, David Leveaux's handsomely staged revival at the Minskoff Theater lacks gusto, earthiness, warmth and soul.
The orchestra is perched in a lovely grove: At any moment, you expect Konstantin to arrive with Nina for the production they stage in the back yard of the family estate in "The Seagull."
At the time it closes, this production will have played 36 previews and 817 regular performances.
Almost 50 years have passed since I wrote the book for this Broadway hit - I'm delighted about the new West End production.
Review by Matthew Murray
Legit News: Joseph Stein also wrote 'Zorba' tuner -- Joseph Stein, who wrote the book for tuner "Fiddler on the Roof," died Oct. 24 in Manhattan from a fall. He was 98 and had been ailing from prostate cancer.<...
There are five musicals that are just about perfect. One is "Fiddler on the Roof." It has opened in a matchless production in London and deserves to run forever.
Much of the revival in a three-week stop at the Pantages is more kitsch than kosher.
You probably know that Tevye, the main character in Fiddler on the Roof, is a milkman. But did you know that Topol, the actor most identified with the role of Tevye, is a milkman too? Well, he's a different kind of milkman: He's an actor who milks every joke for all it's worth.
Generations around the world have grown up with Fiddler on the Roof and such unforgettable, iconic songs as If I Were a Rich Man and Sunrise, Sunset. But getting to the final Fiddler was a f…