Wonderful!
by lizziekr on 2/18/10Golden Gate Theatre - San FranciscoRating: 4 out of 5We enjoyed the musical immensely. It took a while to get used to Harvey Fiersten's nasal voice.

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Fiddler on the Roof on Tour
In Broadway terms, Fiddler on the Roof is a tradition unto itself. The much-loved story of Tevye the milkman's struggle to reconcile old Jewish ways with the modern world opened on Broadway in 1964 and held the record for longest-running musical — with 3,242 performances until it closed in 1970 — for nearly 10 years. The blockbuster won nine Tony Awards — including best musical, direction, and choreography — and has been revived on Broadway five times.
Producer Harold Prince hired director-choreographer Jerome Robbins to bring Sholom Aleichem's turn-of-the-19th-century Yiddish tales of life in the Anatevka shtetl, where existence is "as precarious as a fiddler on the roof," to the stage. Jerry Bock's music and Sheldon Harnick's lyrics illuminated the fading world of East European Jewry, while Joseph Stein's book brought a humorous taste of Jewish comedy's borscht belt. Painter Marc Chagall's blend of Jewish traditionalism and artistic modernism inspired the show's memorable look. Zero Mostel played Tevye, and Beatrice Arthur, of Maude television fame, portrayed Yente the matchmaker.
The most recent revival arrived in 2015, when director Bartlett Sher enhanced the show's authenticity with the help of Israeli-born choreographer Hofesh Shechter. The New York Times praised the new production as "superb" while noting how it recaptured the foot-stomping, hand-waving energy of the original.
Sher's revival, now on tour with Yehezkel Lazarov as Tevye and Maite Uzal as his wife Golde, is delighting audiences with celebratory songs like "Tradition," "If I Were a Rich Man," and "To Life (L'Chaim)," as well as beautiful melodies of love and loss such as "Sunrise, Sunset" and "Far From the Home I Love."
As part of a trend that began with The Sound of Music and The Wizard of Oz, Fiddler on the Roof fans are dressing up as Anatevkans and belting out tunes during screenings of the show's 1971 film adaptation. Their participatory zeal reflects the devotion the musical has inspired and the power of its music.
"What can we do?" asks Tevye of Golde during a moment of doubt. "It's a new world." One solution is to return to the source for cultural renewal. We may not experience the same problems as shtetl Jews in 1905 did, but Fiddler on the Roof assures us that almost any difficulty can be surmounted with great music and exuberant dancing.
We enjoyed the musical immensely. It took a while to get used to Harvey Fiersten's nasal voice.
Absolutely loved it! Actors were all great and .Mr. Fierstein was totally awesome in the lead. I laughed and I cried and I didn't want it to be over. I will recommend to everyone I see to get tickets before the show moves on.
I've seen Fidler on the Roof on three different occasions over the years and this one was by far the best. It was very entertaining. I highly recommend it.
Really a delightful rendition of this classic. No flaws. Good house. We were in the back of the orchestra and could hear and see well. The heart of the show is always Tavia, and the lead makes a very plausible rendition It is a bit like Les Mis where the part has been played so many times you don't expect much but he was great. Tremendous vocal range, and sense of humor.
We enjoyed Fiddler. Very colorful, sets were great. Harvey's gravelly voice fit the part of Tevya well, although sometimes difficult to hear. Some of the singing was off key.........all in all a wonderful afternoon and I would recommend the musical.
I loved Topol in Fiddler. I thought there could never be another for me. On the other hand, Harvey Fierstein plays a great Tevye. That voice! At times comical in itself, really creates a memorable character, a lovable one. Well played and well sung, the cast puts on a good show. Go, you have forgotten how many good songs are in this show.
I love Fiddler on the Roof. The most improtant part about the play is the powerful musical numbers. I repeat this is a musical. Harvey Fierstein can hardly talk (I'm guessing from too many years of smoking) let alone sing. He didn't completely ruin this event for me because the rest of the cast was amazing. But in the future, the people in charge of casting should consider the musical talents of the applicants more thant their name recognition.
Great show, big numbers, most enjoyable production! Go see it quick!
We enjoyed the evening, the music was great, the actors were very well casted and the sets were well done.
Harvey Fierstein was perfect for his role, delivering an amazing performance; we had seen Fiddler years ago in NYC ... the warmth, humor, and great songs came alive again ... it was better than seeing it for the first time ... a great way to spend an afternoon and experience this story and great songs in the incomparable manner found in this San Francisco performance.
A very well done production with good casting, coordinated singing and dancing. Not the best I have seen but not the worst. Fierstein brings his own style to the roll of Tevye. My major criticism of this production was the venue. The Golden Gate Theatre is not one of the better houses for Broadway theatre. The location is bad, the facilities are out of date, and the layout of this theatre is "old school".
The 15 Feb performance was excellent. My only complaint was the persons head in the seat in front of me blocked my view somewhat. We were way back in row Y of orchestra, which were the best seats we could get a week before the show.
This is not to be missed. Wow, it was absolutely incredible. Harvey Fierstein is incredible, as are the rest of the actors. Their voices were strong, clear and absolutely amazing. The songs were a joy to hear again and the story as fantastic as always. Harvey's classic asides abound and bring you humor, laughter, in his true glib style. Don't miss it.
Great story and music. Liked the staging and the quick movment between sets. Did not like Harvey Fierstein's voice as Tevye--it did not project and was not melodic enough. Also, we could hear someone back stage listening to the Olympics while the show was on--very distracting and disappointing.
I was really looking forward to this show as I have grown up LOVING the film version of the musical. However by the end of the first number I knew I was in for a loooong road. Any high points the live version had were greatly overshadowed by the lack of singing voice of Harvey Fierstein. He may look the part of Tevye, but he certainly couldn't pull off the sound. The rest of the performances were good, but not amazing.. There was certainly room for improvement.
From beginning to end, this was totally entertaining!
I love Fiddler on the Roof. It's one of my favorites. Harvey was good as Tevye, but his very very low voice was difficult to hear and almost impossible to understand when he was speaking. You could make the out the words a little better when he was singing, but not much. The rest of the cast was marvelous and the group musical numbers were awesome. I think I would sit closer if I was going to go again.
Compared to the original movie/actors, I felt they play lacked emotion.
Harvey Fierstein is very entertaining, but he is no Topol. His timing and comedic acting were superb. But his singing was not. And the twinkle in the eye was obviously absent. All in all, the show was barely able to hold my attention. It easily could have been shortened by 15-25 minutes and would have been better for it. Oh, well, the theme is as relevant today as it was in the 60s. And it is a "must see" show for those wanting to see all the classics.
Well acted and engaging. Many laugh out loud moments.