FIDDLER ON THE ROOF Reviews — Page 4

Caught yesterday's matinee with my son. His first time seeing it (except for the film), my first time actually seeing it performed professionally.

Overall, I liked it....maybe even liked it a lot (and I guess what may have worked is the sentimentality of the piece itself instead of the virtue of this production.

Strengths: I liked Danny Burstein very much, particularly that he wasn't overblown, but much more down to earth. Overall, I think the men fared much better than the women, specifically Motel and Lazar. (Kantor & Dannheisser) I really liked the choreography, too particularly in the company numbers. The vocal work as a whole was good as well. I LOVED the use of the entrances/exits "from below" which happened upstage.

Weaknesses: Energy. WHERE was it? This was an overall issue, and often missing in the full cast scenes (except for Tradition) The performance of Hodel (Massell)....her voice was the best of the three girls, but I found her acting so very wooden, with her word emphasis and pauses coming from left field. It seemed as if she was doing a farcical comedy With the exception of Burstein, I was unimpressed with the vocals of all the leads. They weren't BAD, but these voices were the caliber of good community theater. (And before anyone gets on me about Kantor, I think he is likely much better than yesterday's performance...I wondered if he was nursing an illness, during Miracle of Miracles.)

The "meh" - the sets, I didn't hate them, but goodness those set changes were deadly. Most of the other actors....nothing wrong, per se, but nothing really outstanding. The lighting, perfunctory at best, there were a number of times actors were in the shadows. The staging was adequate, but goodness I had a lot of backs during key scenes. (I was on house right) The concept? I just didn't find it strong enough, so it felt more like an afterthought. Melanie Moore....her acting is only average, and her vocals lacked. I was hoping that I'd see why she was cast in the Chavala sequence as I think she's a beautiful dancer, but I was disappointed. Jessica Hect's accent. Pick one, please.

I enjoyed my time, overall, as did my son.....it just didn't knock our socks off. I will also say, I always forget how long a show Fiddler is, and it was nice that this didn't FEEL long (except during the set changes.)

Pet peeve: In TRADITION why were men and women holding hands dancing?? There could have easily been lines of only men and lines of only women to avoid this. So much is made of this later in the show (with Perchik and Hodel and then again at the wedding that is should never have happened.

Updated On: 2/19/16 at 01:57 PM

The low energy of the cast looked like a potential problem in the recording studio as well in Adam Kantor's vlog. I hope it doesn't come across as such on the album.

I saw the 2nd preview from the next to last row of the rear balcony (I was with a group). From that distance I didn't feel qualified to review the show, especially an early preview, but I did review the audience. It did not receive the energy that caused the show to be stopped or cheering to break out.

But it's a pretty bleak second act. None of the best-loved songs. No song of inspiration and hope tacked on at the end like "You'll Never Walk Alone." The only other stage version of Fiddler that I had ever seen was a semi-pro production at the Gateway Playhouse on Long Island. As I recall, in that they kept everything a little lighter, offering you in the second act more chances to smile or even laugh. Especially noticeable in "Matchmaker."

I'm not sure which is correct, or if there is one correct way to stage this. Give homage to the story being told, of which there were many historical examples, or remember that this is Show Biz and a lot of the audience likes to leave the theater feeling up.