Absolutely fabulous!!
by LouiseT on 2/8/10Golden Gate Theatre - San FranciscoRating: 5 out of 5One of the best shows in a long time! I would recommend this show to everyone, young and old!

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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.
One of the best shows in a long time! I would recommend this show to everyone, young and old!
The character Tevya was horse and hard to understand at times. The show was well performed and the dancing was good. I would go for the female fole performances, and not the lead.
Harvey Fierstein was the best Tevye I've seen, and I've seen quite a few including Theodore Bikel. All the characters had wonderful voices and the acting was first class.
Despite purchasing tickets to see Topol's Fiddler on the Roof, we were sourly disappointed with Harvey's performance. Golden Gate Theater should have done the nobel gesture, as other theaters have already, and refunded the tickets since Topol did not appear and has left the tour.
This was the worst Tevia that I have ever seen play the part. I would not waste my time and money going to see this again, if he was playing the part next time. This Tevia can not sing, in fact his vioce souns like a frog, and you can hardly understand him at times when he does sing or talk. What a disaster. Who casted him for this part? Goldy was just adequate. The play itself is timeless, I have seen it on Broadway and in the movies and loved it.
Anyone who misses a chance to see Harvey Fierstsein perform in San Francisco has blown a golden opportunity. He is fabulous, fabulous, fabulous. Channels both his inner Zero Mostel and his original rendition of the lead role that reminds the audience that under the humor, this was the reality of many ,less than a century ago, laughter, tears and kitsch-free. Awesome.
Well staged and true to original story. Area around Golden Gate Theatre is sketchy
Fiddler on the Roof was out of this world, fantastic, amazing, breathtaking and just simply wonderful! Go see it!
The music was fantastic! I was dissappointed in Harvey Fierstein's Tevye. He had marbles in his mouth about half the time. The other actors and actresses did a remarkable job! I would recommend it to friends (I have already done so) but would not hype a great Tevye performance.
This is one of the best shows I have scene in years. The voices singing were fantastic. The dancing was also fantastic. The stage staff were amazing, and their efforts made the show go on seemlessly.
Harvey Fierstein puts on a entertaining, memorable performance but if you’ve ever seen Chaim Topal, there will never be another Tevye. Dropped one line “I know you love her but do you like her?”
Fiddler is my all time favorite, and this production met or exceeded every expectation. Raised a Roman Catholic, I leave every viewing of Fiddler a little more Jewish.
Fantastic! Harvey Firestein was superb. Great play - I recommend this highly.
Feirstein plays Tevia like a Jewish comedian, none of the original sentimentality was there. The daughters had the best voices and overall it was pleasant but not as good as I remembered.
After reading some negatives reviews about the play, particularly regarding Harvey Fierstein's raspy voice, I was not sure what to expect. Sure enough, I had some trouble fully understanding Harvey Fiersten in the opening monologue. However, as the play progressed, his character grew on me, as did his voice. My 3 kids also attended the play with me (ages 10, 12, 15). None were excited about going, but all enjoyed it enough, to make it an afternoon well spent. After the last scene, my 10 year old looked at me and said, "That's it? It's such a sad ending.", which was proof to me that she had followed along and understood the play. This is a classic play, and while it was not as entertaining for the kids, as Wicked, it is something they will remember.
The Fiddler was fine, but Harvey's performance was annoying and distracting. How can you possibly enjoy his rendition of Sunrise, Sunset when he can't sing and his gravelly voice grates with every note?
Fiddler as always was wonderful. Very disappointed Topol was not in the show as advertised when I bought the tickets. Harvey Fierstein's performance was well done with the exception of his voice. It grates on you after awhile and he definitely can not sing. This is not the role for him.
The entire cast made "Flddler on the Roof" come to life with their acting and singing of such songs as "Sunrise, Sunset". The sets and costumes were amazing (time period specific) and at times I really felt I was in Anetevya. The show does run a little longer than most Broadway musicals (just be sure to move around during intermission) but it is well worth it. You'll definitely be humming some of these musical scores long after you've seen it...
This was an excellent musical, the story was unknown to me but was very engaging. I liked it's fast pace and quick set changes that went so smoothly, it kept me enthralled to the end. The dancing in the wedding/reception scene was fantastic and totally amazed my wife and I (and everyone else in the audience). Bravo!!
The whole play was fantastic. The youngest daughter reminded me of Natalie Wood.