A Production That Even Us Schmucks and Kvetches Can Enjoy

Again, not reminding everyone of my age, I have fond memories of early morning music classes at LCC with Miss Sarah Hardaway. If that name sounds familiar, you might know her by her married name, Springer. Or some of you might also remember her time spent with KVTA. There's a prize if you can find her picture at the KVTA Studios! She, of course, taught us how the basics of music: clapping our hands to learn tempo, FACE and Every Good Boy Does Fine, how to play a recorder. But as a true child of the theatre, every day in class, we sang some of her favorite show tunes. To this day, thanks to Miss Hardaway, I can sing all of Oh, What a Beautiful Morning, Do, Re, Mi, and, of course, Sunrise, Sunset.

You aren't familiar with Matchmaker? How did you get in here? Hey! This one hasn't seen Fiddler! What do I do? Oh, shoot, I wasn't prepared for this. A theatre enthusiast who hasn't seen Fiddler on the Roof? Oh, I know!

I insist that you stop reading right now and...

Hey, come back here! Not right now. Finish reading what I have to say and then stop. Stop reading right then, go to your streaming service of choice, and watch Fiddler on the Roof. Then and only then can we have a civilized discussion about classic theatre.

And, whoa boy, it doesn't get any more classic than this. A peppy, choreographed show with classic songs and instantly memorable characters set against the Russian pogroms of the early 1900s? What? I majored in history and even for me that is a deep cut. Who even came up with this? Let me see...Aleichem, Robbins, and other people who have a lot more experience with the material than me? Well, turns out they were right.

What is Senior Theatre? An actor with amazing longevity that we are all familiar with, Dick Van Dyke, put it plainly:

“Why is it amazing that I don’t act my age? Why should I act my age? Or more to the point, how is someone my age supposed to act? Old age is part fact, part state of mind, part luck, and wholly something best left for other people to ponder, not you or me. Why waste your time? I don’t.”

Senior Theatre is a group of talented individuals acting their age. And, from what I saw last week, every one of these actors is acting their age and beyond.

This pic is a few weeks old, but look at the talent on stage, and this is even missing a few!

KVTA's production of Fiddler on the Roof SR will have everything that you remember and love about Fiddler: the instantly memorable period costumes, the songs that you can't get out of your head, and the tradition! You'll even recognize some of your favorite KVTA performers amongst the batch of fantastically talented newcomers. They use every inch of KVTA's Black Box stage and make good use of the busy sets to keep you immersed in the story.

I was able to peek my head in during a recent rehearsal and watch what the cast and crew had been working on for the last few months. During a break in the action, I asked Director Marsha Hill about her favorite parts of this production. She told me, without pause, that she enjoys the humor that can be found in all parts of the production. Oh, the dialogue and interactions between characters, I thought. It is pretty funny. She then proceeded to tell me about the humor in the music, the costumes, and even the casting. I wasn't sure what she meant, but as the show progressed that evening, I saw everything that she was talking about. Without the humor pervasive throughout most aspects of the show, Fiddler can devolve into a historical drama, and a heavy one at that.

In addition to the humor and amazing comedic timing of this cast, Marsha and I talked about what else we love about this production. Marsha mentioned the music. You know the songs, but you don't often get to hear the songs sung live by such an accomplished chorus. I could hear every individual voice adding to the ensemble and I could hear the right voices grow in intensity when they needed to. While I enjoyed the music, I told Marsha that I loved the characterization. Every actor has taken their role seriously and has found the heart of their character. How does Golde treat Tevye differently than her children or the other men in town? Do the children act their age? How do the suitors act around the daughters, Golde, and Tevye? And how does Tevye feel about everyone he interacts with, including God? I feel that in the short time that I was able to spend with this production, I saw something in every actor that gave me insight into the character they portray.

So I get it. You're a busy person, and you don't have time right this second to go watch Fiddler on the Roof. I suppose you could always come to see this fantastic production at KVTA's Black Box Theatre on July 24, 25, and 26. All three performances are currently SOLD OUT, but there will be a standby ticket line at each performance. Despite this, I recommend that you do everything that you can to see this collection of people on stage acting their age!

Looks like this is the closest we will get to a Reb Dana, what with the shaggy beard and receding hairline.