Review: FIDDLER ON THE ROOF Makes Some Matches in Jackson

If there is one thing that the village of Anatevka has enough of, it is the love of their traditions. The national tour of Fiddler on the Roof brought some of that tradition to Thalia Mara Hall in Jackson, Mississippi on October 22nd. The tour's stop in Jackson opened Thalia Mara's Broadway in Jackson series season presented by Trustmark. The tour itself is presented by NETworks Presentations.

Based on Sholem Aleichem's stories, and inspired by the original Broadway production directed and choreographed by Jerome Robbins, this touring production features a book by Joseph Stein, music by Jerry Bock, and lyrics by Sheldon Harnick. The show offers a glimpse into what life in a Jewish village was like at the turn of the 20th century, and the desperation of a people clinging to tradition during times of change, when their own children are pushing for change - life there as precarious as the perch of a Fiddler on the Roof.

Leading the company strongly as Tevye, a milkman of very little means but with 5 daughters to marry off, Danny Arnold is equal parts hilarious and heartbreaking as the story progresses. Alongside his wife, Golde, played by Maite Uzal, he follows tradition and tries to make decisions with his daughters' best interests at heart, but soon realizes that the eldest three are not going to make that easy on him. Eldest daughter Tzeitel (Kelly Gabrielle Murphy), next eldest Hodel (Ruthy Froch), and middle daughter Chava (Noa Luz Barenblat) choose love over tradition and security. Instead of allowing the village matchmaker, Yente, played hilariously by Carol Beaugard, to choose their spouse, all three girls offer up varying degrees of defiance to the matchmaking process, instead finding love on their own in the form of Motel (Nick Siccone), a young Jewish tailor from the village who is poor but kind, Perchik (Nic Casaula), a Jewish student from Kiev with some radical views visiting Anatevka, and Fyedka, a young gentile who disagrees with the injustices the Jews are facing. Each daughter's decision to chase love instead of settling for a match Yente makes is difficult, but Chava is affected most - by choosing to marry outside of the faith and without her father's permission, her family members, Tevya especially, turn their backs on her.

With such talented vocalists, an ensemble stacked with incredible dancers, and a fantastic fiddler (Ali Arian Molaei), the tour is both entertaining and thought provoking. It makes one realize that sometimes, traditions need breaking and that we have to adapt. The tour will open in Miami beginning tomorrow where it will stay until November 3rd, then it will head on to Tampa. A link to see the full itinerary and find links to tickets can be found below. Don't miss it!

http://fiddlermusical.com/ticket-info/